Brandywine Runs Away With 79-52 Senior Day Victory

MEDIA, Pa. -- Penn State Brandywine outscored Penn State Hazleton 45-26 during the second half to run away with a men's basketball Senior Day victory as the Lions bested Hazleton 79-52 on Saturday afternoon.

A 13-0 Brandywine run capped by Olayinka Itabiyi's (Chester, Pa./Chester) three-pointer at the 13:46 mark of the first half gave the Lions a nine-point edge, but Hazleton battled back to within two seven minutes later.

The Lions answered Hazleton's push by scoring seven of the next nine points and claimed a 34-26 edge at the break following Colin Hockenbrock's (Wilmington, Del./St. Elizabeth) putback layup with 28 seconds to go.

Leading 39-31 early in the second half, Brandywine used a 16-4 surge, aided by points from seven different scorers, to extend the margin to 55-35.

Hazleton fought back, holding Brandywine scoreless for more than five minutes as the visitors pulled within seven when Connor Rushing sank two free throws with 6:45 on the clock.

Hockenbrock ended the Hazleton run with a basket, while Devon Jones (Philadelphia, Pa./Central) followed with five-straight points and Jamar Wright (Wilmington, Del./Conrad School of Science) added a triple to push the margin back to double figures.

The visitors whittled their deficit as low as 13 points at 4:52 mark, but Brandywine held Hazleton without a point the rest of the way and Johnta Dunson (Philadelphia, Pa./Freire Charter) scored nine points during the final four minutes to help Brandywine pull away.

Dunson topped all scorers with 17 points on 6-of-9 shooting, while Hockenbrock paired 16 points with 13 rebounds and five assists. Jones and Joey Brusha (Abington, Pa./Abington) both notched 11 points.

Brandywine shot over 50 percent (30-59) from the field and knocked down 13 triples, while holding a 39-29 edge on the boards. The Lions' reserves outscored Hazleton's bench 25-2.

Brandywine (8-15, 8-9 PSUAC) hosts Penn State Wilkes-Barre for its final home game of the regular season Tuesday night at 8:00 PM.