KUTZTOWN, Pa. — Jay Rose netted a game-high 20 points, and Pitt-Johnstown controlled the tempo down the stretch to secure a 79-67 victory over Kutztown in a PSAC crossover matchup on Sunday afternoon at Keystone Arena.

The Mountain Cats led for all but 18 seconds in the second half as they won their fourth straight game to improve to 9-3 (3-1 PSAC).  

Rose led the Mountain Cats in scoring for the third straight game, which included a 21-point effort in a win over East Stroudsburg on Saturday. The sophomore guard knocked in three 3-pointers and added four rebounds and four assists.

Junior guard Vinnie Cugini drilled a game-high four triples and finished with 19 points, five rebounds and two steals. Baden Forup chipped in 12 points and seven rebounds, while Adam Bilinsky contributed 10 points, three assists, two steals and two blocks.

With the game tied at 50 apiece with less than 13 minutes to go, Bilinsky went 2-for-2 at the free-throw line at the 12:53 mark to give the Mountain Cats a lead that would never fade away.

After Pitt-Johnstown's lead was reduced to three with less than six minutes left, Cugini hit a clutch three that was followed by a jumper from Nick Watts to push the advantage back to eight nearly a minute later.

Rose then scored seven of Pitt-Johnstown's final nine points, including a 3-pointer that extended the lead to 73-66 with just 2:34 to go.

There were four ties and six lead changes, most of them coming in the first 20 minutes before the Mountain Cats found a spark. Trailing 33-29, they ripped off an 8-2 run to take a narrow 37-35 advantage into the break.

The Mountain Cats shot 52.7% (29 of 55) from the field, 47.1% (8 of 17) from beyond the 3-point arc and 59.1% (13 of 22) from the free-throw line. They held a 27-17 edge in bench points and scored 14 points off 14 Kutztown turnovers.

Jordan Nkoa Abessolo recorded a team-high 19 points for the Golden Bears, who dropped to 2-5 (0-3 PSAC). 

Following an extended break for the holidays, Pitt-Johnstown will host Millersville at 5 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 2 in the Sports Center.