AU Men’s Basketball Drops Two in Erie, PA
December 14, 2003

By Joe Monaco, AU Sports Information

Complete Box Scores
vs. Mercyhurst     vs. Gannon

The Ashland University men’s basketball team dropped two Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference matches this past weekend in Erie, PA. The Eagles were routed by Mercyhurst, 76-49, on Thursday (Dec. 11) then were downed at Gannon, 75-64, on Saturday (Dec. 13). The Eagles fell to 3-6 overall and 0-4 in conference action.

Below is a recap of both contests.

Mercyhurst 76, Ashland 49 (Mercyhurst Athletic Center – Erie, PA)
Joshua Helm scored 22 points and grabbed nine rebounds as the ‘Hurst hammered Ashland, 76-49, on Thursday (Dec. 11) at the Mercyhurst Athletic Center in Erie, PA.

The Lakers took an early 3-0 advantage when Helm stole a pass from Greg Emmons (Ashland, OH) and drove the length of the court before finding an open Mitch Brennan for the three-pointer. The ‘Hurst forward ended the game with 15 points, including 3-4 from three-point range.

Mercyhurst would never trail the remainder of the game. AU was able to get as close as two points when a layup by Greg Mayes (Austintown, OH) cut the deficit down to two points at 17-15. The Lakers’ experience would ultimately get the best of the Eagles’ youth as Mercyhurst proceeded to go on a 17-5 in the next five minutes capped off with a Helm layup at 4:20. In the final two minutes of the first half, Justin Shouse connected on two of his four three-pointers to give the Lakers a 43-25 lead going into the break. The Lakers’ point guard finished the game with 18 points and dished out eight assists.

The Lakers shot 50 percent (17-34) in the first half from the floor while the Eagles could only manage 39 percent (11-28).

Ashland could have only hoped for 39 percent shooting in the second half as the Eagles came out of the locker room and were ice cold from the floor. AU made 26 percent (7-27) of its shots in the second half. For the game, Ashland was 3-18 from three-point range compared to 10-27 from Mercyhurst.

Mercyhurst bumped up the lead to 20 points after Brennan nailed a jumper from 14 feet to give the Lakers a 48-28 lead with 16:55 remaining in the half. The closest the Eagles would sniff the lead was 15 points when freshman guard Alex Jones (Englewood, OH/Northmont) made two free throws with 12:21 remaining to cut the score to 53-38. Mercyhurst outscored the Eagles, 23-11, in the final 10 minutes capped off by a Torry Mitchell layup to end the game. He finished with 11 points.

Freshman Vahn Knight (Euclid, OH/St. Benedictine) led Ashland with 10 points and six rebounds. Kevin Shorter (Clinton Township, MI/Owens C.C.) and Mayes each added seven points apiece.

The Lakers improved their record to 5-3 overall and 2-0 in conference action.

It was the first time that Ashland was held under 50 points in conference action since joining the league.

Gannon 75, Ashland 64 (Hammermill Center – Erie, PA)
In a game that saw more fouls (55) than field goals made (39) and 73 total free throws, the Golden Knights came out of the sloppy affair with a 75-64 victory over Ashland at the Hammermill Center in Erie, PA on Saturday (Dec. 13).

Gannon rolled out to a 12-0 lead after Brandon Andrews, who finished with a game-high 17 points, drove the lane and hit a layup after only 3:20 expired from the game clock. Ashland got its first points when Jones made two free throws at 15:45 to get the Eagles onto the scoreboard. After Forrest Kirby missed a layup, the Eagles were able to take advantage and get their first field goal when Mark Church (Columbus, OH/Owens C.C.) pulled up and hit an eight-footer for the score at 12:49.

Gannon continued to control the remainder of the half, but Jones connected on a three-pointer from the top of the key to cut the deficit down to six points at 34-30 with 1:25 left in the first half. Joe Rivera answered Jones’ three with one of his own and pushed the lead back up to seven points at 37-30 going into intermission.

Ashland shot 28 percent (7-25) in the first half compared to Gannon’s 50 percent (11-22). The Eagles finished the game shooting 32 percent (19-60) and 29 percent (6-21) from three-point range.

The Eagles came out in the second half and tied up the game at 37 when Knight connected on a three-pointer at 17:48. After jumping out with a 7-0 scoring streak, Gannon responded with a 13-0 scoring roll of its own capped off by two free throws by freshman Shelby Chaney. Both teams had plenty of opportunities from the free throw line as Gannon made 32 of 47 attempts while the Eagles had their best performance from the line this season, shooting 77 percent (20-26).

Church was able to put an end to the Eagles’ cold streak when he made a three-pointer to cut the lead down to 10 points at 50-40 with 11:55 remaining. However – the Eagles were unable to get any closer than eight points to the Gannon’s lead for the duration of the contest.

Church led Ashland with 13 points and seven rebounds while Knight and Emmons each finished with 11 points apiece. Shorter had eight points and 13 rebounds.

Forrest Kirby had a double-double with 11 points and 12 rebounds while Ron Wright added 11 points and Matt Jones had 10 points for Gannon. The Golden Knights improved to 7-2 on the season and 2-1 in conference play.

Both teams had plenty of opportunities from the free throw line as Gannon made 32 of 47 attempts while the Eagles had their best performance from the line this season shooting 77 percent (20-26).

Ashland will be back in action on Tuesday (Dec. 16) at home against Tiffin. Game time is slated for 7:30 p.m.