BLOOMSBURG, Pa. – The Kutztown University men's basketball team couldn't keep up with the Bloomsburg Huskies on Sunday afternoon, falling 81-72 in a Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference East Division contest inside the Nelson Field House.
The Golden Bears (7-17, 3-14 PSAC) were forced to play from behind for most of the game, and despite building a comeback in the latter half, fell to a Huskies (6-19, 5-13 PSAC) squad that featured a pair of 20-point players and a much deeper scoring attack.
Bloomsburg gained traction early in the game, draining four threes in a two-minute span for a 13-point lead with 11 minutes to play in the first half. The Huskies stretched their advantage to 17 by the break, wearing down the Kutztown defense to maintain hopes of winning one of their last home games of the season.
KU didn't let that stop a comeback attempt, as the visitors put up a 15-3 run shortly after the half to trim the deficit to seven. The Golden Bears outscored (44-36) and outrebounded (20-14) the Huskies in the second half, but the crater was too big to conquer in the nine-point defeat.
Senior guard Jalen Bryant (Edgewood, Md./John Carroll) led the comeback effort with 21 points and three steals in 40 minutes, draining four of the team's six three-point baskets while pulling down five rebounds and handing out three assists. Amir Cunningham (Middletown, Del./Middletown) contributed with a strong 15 points and seven rebounds, while Brent Ricketts Jr. (Seaford, Del./Seaford) turned in 11 points for Kutztown. Juju Pagan (Tobyhanna, Pa./Pocono Mountain West) (nine points and six rebounds) and Josh McKoy (Reading, Pa./Berks Catholic) (seven points, five rebounds and two steals) also contributed to Kutztown's efforts in defeat.
Kutztown led in paint points (38-28) while controlling the offensive glass (16-6), giving them the advantage in second-chance points (18-4) on the afternoon.
The Golden Bears return home for a pair of conference games against Shippensburg (Wednesday, Feb. 19 at 7:30 p.m.) and Shepherd (Saturday, Feb. 22 at 3 p.m.) at Keystone Arena.
