Box Score
CARLISLE, Pa. – Billy Hagan scored
19 of his game-high 21 points in the decisive second half
as Dickinson stormed back from an 11-point halftime deficit
to defeat Gettysburg 75-66 in Centennial Conference (CC) men’s
basketball action on Saturday.
Hagan went 6-for-7 from the floor while
playing all 20 minutes in the second half and converted the
go-ahead three-point play with 1:55 remaining to help the
Red Devils (13-12, 7-6 CC) play the spoiler’s role to perfection.
The loss, combined with Franklin &
Marshall’s 61-54 win over Johns Hopkins, left the Bullets
(18-6, 10-3 CC) as the No. 2 seed in the CC West Division
for next week’s conference playoffs.
Gettysburg opens its quest for back-to-back
championships at Muhlenberg on Wednesday. Game time
is 8 p.m. The Bullets downed the Mules 68-59 in last
season’s title game at Memorial Hall and fell in Allentown
70-62 earlier this season.
Tony Beers added 18 points
for Dickinson while Jon Schwadron posted a double-double
with 11 points and 11 rebounds. Brandon Karpo
chipped in with 13 points.
Terence Callahan (Bay Shore, NY/St.
Anthony’s) led Gettysburg with 20 points while Curtis
McNeil (Alexandria, VA/St. Stephen’s & St. Agnes)
added 18, but managed only a single 3-pointer on 1-of-6 shooting
in the second half. Jim Natale (Washington Crossing,
PA/Council Rock) also hit double figures with 10.
In a tale of two halves, the Red Devils’
14-for-25 shooting in the second half trumped the Bullets’
14-for-25 performance from the floor in the opening 20 minutes
thanks to Hagan’s heroics.
The junior scored five points in a 16-4
run to open the second half that helped Dickinson turn an
11-point deficit into a 45-44 lead with 14:21 remaining.
Hagan drained a 3-pointer to tie the
game at 52 and gave the Red Devils a 63-59 lead with a pair
of free throws.
McNeil pulled the Bullets within one
by draining his only 3-pointer of the second half and Natale
turned a steal and foul into two free throws and a 64-63 Gettysburg
lead.
Karpo drilled the last of his three 3-pointers
put Dickinson back on top, before John Schnebly (Hagerstown,
MD/South Hagerstown) converted a layup to tie the
game at 66 with 2:08 left.
On the Red Devils’ next trip, Hagan was
fouled while scoring a layup and hit the bonus free throw
to put Dickinson ahead for good at 69-66.
The Bullets went 0-for-5 in the game’s
final 1:55 and the Red Devils iced the win by converting 6
of 9 free throws.
In contrast to the final 20 minutes,
Gettysburg jumped to a 40-29 halftime lead thanks to hot shooting
and five 3-pointers from McNeil.
On the Bullets first possession of the
game, the senior drilled a three with the shot clock winding
down and Callahan followed with six of Gettysburg’s next eight
points to build a quick 12-2 lead with 4:07 gone.
Dickinson answered with an 8-0 run, but
McNeil knocked down treys on the Bullets’ next two trips to
restore an eight-point lead.
Keyed by five points from Beers, the
Red Devils used an 11-4 run to pull within one.
McNeil drained his fourth three-pointer
of the half to make it 27-22 and knocked down his fifth triple
with 58 seconds left to key a 10-4 Gettysburg burst that made
it 40-29 at the half.
David Glaser (West Chester, PA/Malvern
Prep) chipped in with nine points and a team-high
five rebounds for the Bullets.
Gettysburg is appearing in the CC postseason
for the third time. The Bullets advanced to the conference
title game in 1996 and won their first CC championship in
2001.
-30-
