MEADVILLE, Pa. -- The Allegheny College men's basketball team jumped back above the .500 mark in Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) action with a 67-55 home victory over Hiram College on Wednesday evening inside the David V. Wise Center.

The Gators (6-10, 4-3 PAC) got out to a quick start, scoring the first seven points of the contest. Allegheny continued to nurture its lead as it matured to 21-10 midway through the opening half, led by 11 early points by Ryan Lang (Sarver, Pa./Knoch). The Gators maintained a double-digit lead for most of the final 10 minutes in the half, going up by as much as 13 late before taking a 32-21 lead into the halftime break.

Although James Sitter (Erie, Pa./Fairview) opened the second half with a 3-pointer, Hiram responded by scoring the next six points to cut the lead back to single digits. The Terriers continued to chip away and climbed within four points of the Gators at 41-36 before Eli Teslovich (Belle Vernon, Pa./Shady Side Academy) converted an and-one to halt the run.

The game remained close as Drovinsky Ulysse buried a pair of treys about a minute apart, with the latter reducing the Gator lead to 51-45. However, the Terriers missed their next 10 field goals and didn't score again until Kyle Heaton made a free throw with under two minutes to play.

By the time the drought ended, Allegheny had widened the gap to 17 points with an 11-0 run. A driving layup by Teslovich, seven unanswered points by Pijus Latauskas (Vilnius, Lithuania/Kiski Prep (Pa.)), and another Sitter layup put the Gators on top 62-45 with 2:45 remaining. Latauskas put an exclamation mark on the victory with a two-handed dunk in the closing minutes, the result of a great full-court press break.

Inside the Box

• Allegheny shot 30.6% (11-of-36) in the first half, but that number rose to 41.2% (14-of-34) in the second half.
• Likewise, Hiram shot 27.3% (9-of-33) in the first half and 39.3% (11-of-28) in the second stanza.
• The Gator offense committed only eight turnovers, while the defense logged seven steals on 13 Hiram turnovers.
• Allegheny held a 43-to-42 advantage in rebounds, while the Terriers finished with a 6-to-1 advantage in blocks.
• Despite missing Jayson Perry (Tampa, Fla./Sickles) from the traditional starting lineup, all 67 points were scored by Allegheny's starting five.
• Sitter (21), Latauskas (18), and Lang (11) each scored in double figures.
• Lang added a game-high 10 rebounds for a double-double.
• Teslovich, who made his first start of the year at point guard, added nine points with five assists.
• Max Wallace (Erie, Pa./Cathedral Prep) scored eight points with seven rebounds and had the team's only blocked shot.
• Hiram's scoring was balanced among 12 different players.
• Brock Makrancy paced the Terriers with nine points on 3-of-6 shooting from 3-point range.

News and Notes

• The Gators improved to 6-10 overall and 4-3 against PAC opponents this season.
• Allegheny is 4-0 this season when outrebounding its opponent.
• Longtime rivals in the North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC), Allegheny is now 64-59 all-time against Hiram.
• Allegheny has won three of its last four meetings with Hiram, with all three wins coming on its home court.
• Sitter reached the 20-point plateau for the second time this season and made five or more 3-pointers for the third time.
• Lang earned a double-double in points and rebounds for the second consecutive game.
• Teslovich played a season-high 30 minutes in his first start as a Gator, and his five assists were a season-best.

Up Next
The Gators will travel to Washington and Jefferson College on Saturday, January 24. Tip-off against the Presidents is scheduled for 3 p.m.