KUTZTOWN, Pa. – The Kutztown University men's basketball team was outmatched by the Shepherd Rams on Saturday afternoon, with the home team winning 59-36 at the Butcher Athletic Center in a Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference East Division matchup.

Senior guard Jalen Bryant (Edgewood, Md./John Carroll) did all he could to will the Golden Bears (7-12, 3-9 PSAC) to a second consecutive win and a fourth conference victory, but the second-half surge from the Rams (13-6, 9-3 PSAC) was too much to overcome in the end.

The Edgewood, Md., native led the team with 21 points and six rebounds, converting on three of his four second-half three-point attempts while drilling both free throws in 40 minutes of play. However, Bryant was the only KU scorer in double figures, as the second-best PSAC East team limited any second options and drummed up a 33-point second half en route to a fifth straight victory.

It was a close affair for the first frame, as the last of four lead changes came with three minutes remaining in the opening period and a manageable, seven-point margin separated the teams at the break. The Rams came out of the locker room and never looked back, using a 41.9 percent mark from the field in their high-scoring second frame while holding the Golden Bears offense at bay for large portions of the closing period.

Kutztown's defensive mustered up four steals and a pair of blocks, the latter coming from big man Tyler Koenig (Waldwick, N.J./Pioneer Academy) in his 11 minutes on the floor. While the Golden Bears were able to stay out of foul trouble for most of the game, they could not draw their opponents into fouling, eliminating a reliable free throw element they have appeared to lean on in many games this season.

KU returns home for a meeting with East Stroudsburg at Keystone Arena on Wednesday, Jan. 29, at 7:30 p.m.