KUTZTOWN, Pa.-- The Kutztown University men's basketball (4-23, 3-18 PSAC) team put up a season-high in points, field goals made, and assists, but it couldn't keep up with the potent No. 18 East Stroudsburg (23-4, 17-4 PSAC) offense in a 103-86 loss in the home finale at Keystone Arena Wednesday evening.
The Golden Bears had five players end in double-figures, led by Jaiden McGhee (Townsend, Del./Middletown), who put up a team-high and season-high 25 points. The Townsend, Del. native also grabbed eight boards. Brent Ricketts Jr. (Seaford, Del./Seaford) had 16, while Ryan Glassmacher (Stewartsville, N.J./Bethlehem Catholic (Pa.)) had 14. Yahmir Satterfield (Philadelphia, Pa./Imhotep Charter) finished with 12, followed by Juju Pagan (Tobyhanna, Pa./Pocono Mountain West) with 11. Amir Cunningham (Middletown, Del./Middletown) grabbed a team-high six boards to go along with six points. Kameron Roberts (Townsend, Del./Middletown) dished out a team-high seven assists.
ESU shared the wealth offensively, with five ending in double-figures and 12 registering points on the scoresheet. Justin Paz finished with 20 points, going 6-for-7 from behind the arc.
As is usually the case between the two teams, it was a hectic and fast-paced first 20 minutes. The Warriors' patented high-press was in full effect, causing 11 turnovers and a 17-0 points off-turnover advantage. Despite some struggles from KU, the Golden Bears kept battling. A layup from Cunningham cut the ESU lead to just 31-27 with 5:48 left until the half. From that point on, the Warriors ended the half on a 17-8 run, spearheaded by two-three balls from Paz to make it 48-33 at the break.
ESU's depth and talent began to show as the second half opened. The Warriors came out of the locker room and put up a 15-2 run to make it 63-35 with 17:18 left. The Warrior's lead extended to 33 points with 8:06 left, their largest of the contest. KU ended the game on a 28-13 run, led by 12 points from Glassmacher, to cut the score to 103-86 as time expired.
The Golden Bears wrap up the 2023-24 season on the road at Shepherd this Saturday, March 2 at 3 p.m.
