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University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown Athletics

PITT-JOHNSTOWN MOUNTAIN CATS

Men's Basketball

Mountain Cats Pummel PSU-New Kensington, 104-54

12/09/2009

Danny Branch (Washington, D.C.) scored a game-high 18 points to lead a Mountain Cat attack that saw everyone in uniform score at least three points, including five in double-figures, in a 104-54 non-conference victory over Penn State-New Kensington, Wednesday night in the Sports Center. Pitt-Johnstown has won three straight games and improved to 4-3.
Penn State-New Kensington kept it close early and held an 11-10 lead nearly eight minutes into the game. However, Andy Byer's (Tire Hill, Pa.) three-pointer ignited a 16-0 run over the next 3:24 to give the Mountain Cats a 26-11 lead with 8:56 remaining in the half.
Pitt-Johnstown pushed it out to 41-20 at 3:18 on three-of Jordan Miller's (Mineral Point, Pa.) 14 first half points, before Patrick Grubbs' (Turtle Creek, Pa.) ended the half with a lay-up to make it 51-26.
The Mountain Cats kept the pressure on in the second half. Leading 71-40 with 12:57 left, the Mountain Cats outscored the Lions 26-7 over the next 7:50 to extend the lead to 97-47 on Miller's jumper. Pitt-Johnstown eventually built the lead to 52 points on a Jordan Medich (North Huntingdon, Pa.) free-throw with under a minute to play, before going on to the 50-point victory.
The Mountain Cats ended the night shooting 65.7% (44-67) from the field, while holding Penn State-new Kensington to just 32.3% (21-65). Pitt-Johnstown also held a 46-25 advantage in rebounding.
Branch led all scorers with 18 points on 7-10 shooting from the field, 2-3 from three-point range and 2-3 from the free-throw line. Grubbs and Miller each had 16 points, while Rudy Roberts (Cleveland, OH) and Byer had 12 points apiece. Roberts was 6-6 from the floor and pulled down a game-high eight rebounds. Steve Heidenthal (Clymer, Pa.) and Grubbs grabbed seven rebounds each. Nick Novak (Murrysville, Pa.) collected eight points and a game-high nine assists.
Justin Reed's 13 points paced Penn State New-Kensington. Greg Conroy and Joe Mandak scored 12 and 11 points respectively, for the Lions, who fell to 2-6 on the year.
Pitt-Johnstown will wrap-up the first semester at Bloomsburg University on Saturday, before breaking for Finals Week and the holiday season. The Mountain Cats will open the Spring Semester with three straight road games, before hosting WVIAC rival Alderson-Broaddus (WV) College on Saturday, January 16 as part of a doubleheader with the Lady Cats. The Lady Cats will tip-off at 1 p.m., followed by the men's game at 3 p.m.
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