MEADVILLE, Pa. – The Allegheny men's basketball team used a big second half performance to defeat Chatham 69-66 in Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) action Saturday (Feb. 7) in Meadville.
 
The teams went back-and-forth early on before back-to-back threes by Pijus Latauskas (Vilnius, Lithuania/Kiski Prep (Pa.)) and James Sitter (Erie, Pa./Fairview) gave Allegheny a 14-8 lead. The Cougars answered with their own 7-0 run to regain the lead. The game remained close as a traditional three point play by Jayson Perry (Tampa, Fla./Sickles) made it a one point game, 33-32. However, the Cougars closed out the half on a 6-0 run to lead 39-32 at the halftime break.
 
The Cougars opened the second half on an 8-1 run to push their lead to 47-33. Their lead grew to 52-38 before the Gators went on a quick 8-0 run to pull within six points. The run persevered through a timeout as Lincoln Brockmeyer (Akron, Ohio/Copley) and Ryan Lang (Sarver, Pa./Knoch) hit consecutive threes to tie the game at 52. After the Cougars broke up the run with a free-throw, Isaiah Portis (Medina, Ohio/Norwayne) hit a three to give the Gators their first lead since early in the game. Minutes later, Lang converted a traditional three point play before a Brockmeyer three pointer gave Allegheny a 62-55 advantage, leading to a Chatham timeout.
 
Chatham closed the gap to two points, 66-64, with just over a minute remaining. They would then tie the game on a pair of free-throws with 50 seconds remaining. On the ensuing possession, Lang drove to the basket and made a tough, contested lay-up to put Allegheny back in front. After the Gators forced a turnover, Lang hit a free-throw to make it 69-66. Chatham missed a game-tying three with Allegheny grabbing the rebound as the Gators earned the conference victory.
 
Inside the Box

• Lang led the Gators with 19 points, nine rebounds and six assists.
• Latauskis finished with 13 points and five rebounds.
• Brockmeyer had 12 points off of four three pointers.
• Sitter was the fourth Gator in double-digits, netting 10 points with three rebounds.
• Perry neared a triple double with nine assists, eight points and eight rebounds.
• Max Wallace (Erie, Pa./Cathedral Prep) added four points while Portis had five rebounds and three points.
• The Gators owned a 37-31 advantage on the boards.

News and Notes

• Allegheny is now 3-7 all-time against Chatham.
• Lang recorded his eighth straight game with 10 or more points.
• Perry dished out a career-high nine assists.

Up Next
The Gators travel to Grove City Wednesday (Feb. 11).