ERIE, Pa. – The Mansfield University men's basketball team fell on the road to Gannon University, 93-72, in a Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) East-West cross over contest on Saturday afternoon, Dec. 18.
 
The Mountaineers drop to 1-9 on the year and 0-4 in the PSAC, while Gannon improves to 6-2 overall and 3-1 in conference play.
 
The Mounties fell by just one point, 43-42 in the second half, but couldn't overcome a 50-30 deficit after the first half to allow Gannon to seal the victory.
 
Gannon exploded out of the gate on a 7-0 run over the opening three minutes before freshman Scott Woodring got the Mounties on the board. The Knights knocked down seven of their 11 trifectas in the first half, while converting 9-of-12 shots at the charity stripe to build the insurmountable lead.
 
The Mounties cut the deficit to five after another Woodring bucket at the 17:05 mark, but that is as close as MU could get as the Knights led by as much s 26 in the half.
 
The Mountaineers were pesky on defense, scoring 29 of their points off 19 Gannon turnovers, while also getting out in transition at a high rate, leading the Knight 26-19. However, Gannon knocked down four more 3-pointers than MU and five more shots at the line to make up the scoring difference.
 
The story of the second half comeback was the Mountaineers' increased pressure on defense, as they won the points-off-turnover margin, 18-8, second chance points10-5, points in the paint, 20-14 and fast-break points, 26-19.
 
Woodring led the Mountaineers with a team-high 15 points, while sophomore Jaz Farrell scored in double figures for the sixth time this season, finishing with 10 points. Freshman Justice Smith led the team in rebounding. Finishing with seven.
 
Gannon's Ike Herster led all scorers with 23 points on 8-of-14 shooting and 4-of-9 from three, while hauling in eight rebounds. Lance-Amir Paul added 16 points and five rebounds.
 
The Mounties are back in action tomorrow, Sunday, Dec. 19 as they travel to Clarion University for a PSAC East-West crossover game. The game has been moved up to 1 p.m. due to the postponement of the women's contest.