Box Score

CARLISLE, Pa. – Gettysburg held Dickinson to 18 points below their season scoring average, but the host Red Devils defeated the Bullets 54-43 in Centennial Conference men's basketball action Wednesday evening at the Kline Center.

Dickinson, which entered the game averaging a conference-leading 72.5 points per game, led by just four early in the second half but pulled away when it connected on a trio of 3-pointers over a three-and-a-half minute stretch.

Senior Alex Zurn (Brookeville, Md./St. Andrew's Episcopal) scored 10 points for Gettysburg (8-8, 4-5 CC), which saw its three-game winning streak snapped. Junior forward Connor Poston (Ambler, Pa./Hatboro-Horsham) added eight points while senior center Benjamin Constable (Christchurch, New Zealand/Cashmere) grabbed a game- and season-high nine rebounds.

Sophomore forward Gerry Wixted led all players with 16 points and shot 8-for-10 at the foul line for Dickinson (12-4, 7-2 CC). Junior guard Adam Honig added 12 points for the Red Devils.

At the midway point of the Centennial Conference schedule, the Bullets find themselves in a three-way tie with McDaniel College and Ursinus College for the fifth and final conference playoff spot.

Both teams struggled offensively in the first half, when the Bullets shot 27.3 percent and Dickinson shot 36.8 percent. Neither team led by more than four in the opening period, and there were two ties and four lead changes over the opening 14:39.

A Brandon Angradi 3-pointer made it 11-9 in favor of the Red Devils with 5:21 left, and Dickinson would not trail the rest of the night. A jumper from senior Derek Brooks (North Wales, Pa./North Penn) made it 15-13 with 2:02 showing, but Wixted hit two free throws with 1:21 on the clock to make it a 17-13 game at the break.

Wixted scored Dickinson's first four points of the second half, and his put-back with 17:58 showing put the Devils up by six. The Bullets twice cut the gap to four, but an 8-2 run gave the hosts their first double-digit lead of the night (31-21) after another Angradi trey with 11:56 remaining. Honig followed up with another long ball to make it 34-24 with 11:11 to go after Zurn had dialed long distance for the Bullets.

The Red Devils saw their lead reach 11 but Gettysburg drew to within six (44-38) on a couple of Poston foul shots with 1:30 left. But Dickinson went 8-for-12 at the foul line the rest of the way to hold on for the win.

Dickinson outscored the Bullets by nine at the foul line, where it shot 14-for-20. Gettysburg went 5-for-12 at the stripe.

The Bullets resume Centennial Conference play on Saturday, when they host Haverford College at 3 p.m.