GRANTHAM, Pa. – The Messiah men's basketball team suffered a 76-57 setback against the Eastern Eagles on Saturday night. Eastern's Nick Mate led the Eagles with 20 points after going a perfect 6-6 from beyond the arc. Messiah held an early six-point lead at 12-6, but Eastern took a 29-22 lead into the break.
After the half, the Eagles expanded their lead to as many as 19 points in the second half. The Falcons hung around, cutting the Eagles' cushion to single digits with under a minute remaining. The late push was not enough as the Eagles held on for the 76-57 victory.
Tyler Penley led Messiah with 14 points on the night while
Arkese Claiborne (13 points) and
Bryce Coletti (11 points) both went for double figures as well.
With the loss, the Falcons fall to 9-14 overall and 4-10 in the MAC Commonwealth, eliminating them from postseason contention. Messiah will be back in action on Tuesday night when they host the Stevenson Mustangs at 6:00 p.m. in their final home game the season.
Action
After a sluggish start from both teams, the teams were closely contested toward the end of the first half. A late turnover and an Eastern three at the buzzer turned a four point deficit into a seven point deficit heading into the break.
Sluggish no more, the Eagles came out of the gates firing in the second half, stretching the lead to as much as 15 less than seven minutes into the half. That lead would grow into as much as 19 with just under 12 minutes to play. Eastern continued to play with a comfortable lead as Messiah attempted to rally but could not get closer than 11 points for the majority of the game.
The Falcons were able to get to single digits as they trailed by nine with a minute and a half to go but free throws extended the Eastern lead and was too much to overcome. Eastern won comfortably 76-57.
In the Box
The Falcons shot 35 from the floor and 33% from beyond the arc, going 8-24.
Tyler Penley led the Falcons in points with 14 while
Arkese Claiborne added 12. Penley and Claiborne also tied for the lead in rebounds with seven. Of note, Eastern guard Nick Mate went a perfect 6-6 from beyond the arc, contributing a team high 20 points in the win for the Eagles.
Next
The Falcons fall to 9-14 overall and 4-10 in the MAC Commonwealth, eliminating them from postseason contention. Messiah will be back on the courts on Tuesday night when they host the Stevenson Mustangs at 6:00 p.m. in their final home game the season.