MEADVILLE, Pa. -- Allegheny senior
Jordan Rawls (Pittsburgh, Pa./Taylor Allderdice) broke the program's all-time scoring record and helped lead the Gators to a Senior Day rout of Denison, 90-63.
Rawls entered play needing 11 points to tie the previous mark of 1,694, and finished with 18 points despite playing just 18 minutes due to foul trouble. He picked up points number 1,694 and 1,695 on the same basket, a drive to the hoop and layup with just under six minutes remaining in the game that saw the crowd in Mullen Arena raise an uproar. Ever the consummate competitor, Rawls sprinted back on defense and deflected a pass out-of-bounds, which prompted the record-breaking announcement from public address announcer David Kennedy as the crowd once again showed its support. The senior later followed that up with a thunderous dunk before leaving the game moments later to yet another standing ovation as time ran out.
The Gators led the contest by 10 at halftime, 38-28, but came out firing on all cylinders in the second half, scoring 52 points on 60.6 percent (20-of-33) shooting and behind seven made three-pointers.
Rawls finished with 18 points on 8-of-11 shooting to put his total at 1,701, making him just the 16th player in North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) history to top 1,700 career points. Despite the aforementioned foul trouble, he also contributed seven rebounds, two steals and two blocks. The seven rebounds give Rawls 748 in his career and move him into second place on the Allegheny career list.
Brian Roberts, Jr. (Copley, Ohio/Copley) led all players with 19 points, highlighted by a trio of triples and a 6-of-7 showing at the charity stripe. He also had a game-best six assists and four steals, plus four rebounds. Five total Gators reached double digits in the win, with
Jordan Greynolds (Barberton, Ohio/Barberton),
Caden Hinckley (Boise, Idaho/Mount Lebanon (Pa.)) and
Keeno Holmes (Pittsburgh, Pa./Lincoln Park) contributing 15, 12 and 11 points, respectively.
Brock Brumfield (Medina, Ohio/Buckeye) added eight points off the bench, including a pair of three-pointers.
Honored along with Rawls in the pre-game senior festivities were
Brendon Urso (Pittsburgh, Pa./Fox Chapel) and
Zach Zoll (Green Bay, Wis./Southwest).
Allegheny will play its final regular season home game of the 2019-20 campaign when it hosts Hiram at 8 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 19.
