Video Replay
 
KUTZTOWN, Pa. – Saturday was a celebratory day on the Kutztown University campus. The day started with more than 500 students walking the stage at winter graduation, and the day ended with the KU men's basketball team winning its fifth straight game with a 27-point, 92-65 win over Goldey-Beacom College at Keystone Arena.
 
The Golden Bears (6-3) led by 10 at halftime, but broke the game open with a 16-3 run in the opening five minutes of the second half to build a 23-point lead over the Lightning (3-7). KU maintained the healthy lead throughout the remainder of the foul-filled second half.
 
KU has now won five-in-a-row for the first time since 2012, when it won 10 straight.
 
"Given the circumstances of final exams and getting out of the weekly routine of practice, I thought we played very well tonight," head coach Bernie Driscoll said. "It took us about 4-5 minutes to get our legs underneath us to start the game, but I think we responded well and pushed the ball well tonight.
 
"We were getting to the basket pretty good offensively," Driscoll noted about KU's success during the run to open the second half, "but we knew that we needed to improve defensively to open up a lead. We started to double-team their guards at times at the top of the circle, which helped us get out in transition and get the tempo in our favor."
 
Notably, 50 fouls were committed Saturday night, 32 in the second half, that resulted in 74 combined free throws for both teams. It was the most fouls calls and free throws taken in a KU game this season.
 
Each of the dozen Golden Bears that played Saturday scored in the team's largest margin of victory of the year. KU shot a season-best 58.5 percent from the field to mark its third straight game making at least 50 percent of its field goal attempts. It shot an impressive 28-of-36 (.778) at the free throw line, as its 28 makes were the most of the season and helped move the team up to second in the conference at 76.1 percent from the charity stripe.
 
Diving into Kutztown's 64 points from the field, it posted season-highs with 50 points in the paint, 37 off the bench and 29 on fast break. Fans were treated to an entertaining night as KU threw down six dunks including numerous alley-oops in transition.
 
Josh Johnson (Norristown, Pa./Norristown) accounted for four of the six dunks and shot 8-of-9 from the field for a team-high 16 points. It is the third straight game the sophomore has scored in double figures. Johnson also finished with six rebounds, three assists and three steals in 24 minutes.
 
Tyler Brooks (Douglassville, Pa./Daniel Boone) scored nine of the team's first 15 points of the game and finished with 14 on the night. He shot 5-of-6 from the free throw line and grabbed six rebounds with four assists and two steals.
 
Howard Sellars (Coatesville, Pa./Coatesville Area (Saint Peter's)) was KU's third double-digit scorer with 11.
 
Kutztown's top contributor may very well have come from freshman forward Jeanlee Baez (Allentown, Pa./Allentown Central Catholic). In his first game of the year playing 10+ minutes, Baez played effective on both ends of the floor. He made 4-of-5 layups to finish with nine points, but made the biggest difference on the floor by playing physical and boxing out to finish with a game-high seven rebounds.
 
"I was very, very pleased with Jeanlee's effort tonight, Driscoll said. "He did a great job for us on both ends of the floor. If we can continue to get this type of production from him, along with all the guys who contributed off the bench tonight, I think we will be in good shape moving forward."
 
Tynell Fortune (Blakeslee, Pa./Pocono Mountain West (California (PA))) also finished with nine points, and is 31 shy of 1,000 in his career. If he scores his average of 16 points in his next two games, he could potentially surpass the career milestone in his return to California (PA) next Wednesday. Fortune played three years and scored 823 points with the Vulcans before transferring to KU this season.
 
Anthony Selby (Jersey City, N.J./Williamstown (Burlington County CC)) threw down the remaining two dunks and has given Kutztown a very athletic option in the paint this season. The starting forward swatted away four blocks and scored eight points with three rebounds. Selby has given KU a great blocking presence inside and has helped lead KU to second in the conference in blocked shots per game (4.78).
 
Austin Beidelman (Schnecksville, Pa./Parkland) also finished with eight points.
 
For the Lightning, point guard Joey Getz led the way with 24 points. Quoted by Driscoll as one of the best guards KU will face all year, Getz showcased great handle and his fast-paced style on both ends of the floor. He made 10-of-11 free throws, grabbed six rebounds and dished out a team-high four assists in 36 minutes.
 
Center Chris Gebhart, listed at 6-8 / 265 lbs., was limited offensively due to tremendous defense by Baez and Selby. He finished with 13 points on 4-of-14 shooting while notching a double-double with 10 rebounds.
 
The Golden Bears return to Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference play with three games next week against Western Division foes, beginning with back-to-back games on Dec. 16-17 at Seton Hill and California (PA), respectively. KU hosts Slippery Rock University on Saturday, Dec. 20 as KU aims to avenge losses to all three teams last season.