KUTZTOWN, Pa. – Kutztown men's basketball fell behind by 14 points late in the first half, but rallied to pull to within just one at halftime. The comeback attempt seemed to stall with tired legs in the second half as KU fell to California (Pa.) 87-73 Saturday afternoon inside Keystone Arena in the final Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference crossover game of the regular season.
The Golden Bears (3-8 overall, 0-5 PSAC) trailed 36-22 with 6:52 to play in the first half, but ended the half on an 18-5 run to claw back to within just one point (41-40) as the teams went into the locker rooms for the intermission.
But the Vulcans (7-7, 2-4) opened the second half with a three-pointer 0:48 in, one of 14 that they made on the day, second-most against the Maroon and Gold this season.
Jordan Nkoa Abessolo (Yaoundé, Cameroon/St. Maria Goretti (Md.)) converted a layup on Kutztown's ensuing possession to cut its deficit to 44-42, but that would be the closest it would get the rest of the way as Cal would score seven straight points and 20 of the next 22 to take a 64-44 advantage with 11:42 to go. KU was outscored 46-33 in the second half.
Jalen Bryant (Edgewood, Md./John Carroll), who was recognized pre-game for his 1,000 point milestone a few weeks back, led the team with 22 points and added four rebounds, one assist and one steal and played all 40 minutes.
Jaiden McGhee (Townsend, Del./Middletown) and Nkoa Abessolo each finished with 11 points and four assists and combined for 11 rebounds, with the former hauling in five and the latter grabbing six, while adding a game-high four steals.
Amir Cunningham (Middletown, Del./Middletown) also ended in double figures in scoring with 10 points and had three rebounds, two assists and two steals.
Juju Pagan (Tobyhanna, Pa./Pocono Mountain West) and
Yahmir Satterfield (Philadelphia, Pa./Imhotep Charter) both tallied six points and
Brent Ricketts Jr. (Seaford, Del./Seaford), contributed five points.
Kutztown will be off until the new calendar year and will return to the court with its first Eastern Division game at Lock Haven on Friday, Jan. 3, at 7:30 p.m.
