TIFFIN, Ohio – The Penn State Altoona men's basketball team overcame a double-digit deficit in the second half of its season opener on Friday night, getting past Adrian College 71-67 in the Seiberling Gymnasium in Heidelberg University's Ron Linhart Memorial Tournament.

The Lions (1-0) will play in the tournament's championship game tomorrow, Saturday, November 11, at 7 p.m. against the winner of tonight's contest between Bluffton University and host Heidelberg.

Penn State Altoona trailed Adrian (0-2) by 11 points just over three minutes into the second half, but the Lions fought back to take the lead in the closing minutes and held on for a four-point victory.

"So proud of this team tonight fighting through adversity on and off the court, sticking together to pull out the win against a scrappy team from the MIAA," said Penn State Altoona head coach David McGreal. "It has been a stressful week dealing with not knowing what our lineup would be and who would start, as we have been dealing with all kinds of issues this preseason. We found out 30 minutes before tipoff that our starting point guard was ruled out, so to be able to stick together through all the adversity off the floor, then go down double digits in the second half and find a way to win makes me so proud."

Justin Sheetz (Eldersburg, MD/Liberty) scored a team-high 15 points for Penn State Altoona, including shooting 3-for-5 from three-point range. Dwayne Jones (Philadelphia, PA/Greater Johnstown) finished with 13 points and a game-high 12 rebounds for the double-double, and he also blocked a game-high three shots.

Kaden Claar (Portage, PA/Portage) scored 11 points and nabbed a pair of steals, and Jahmar White (Yigo, Guam/St. Paul Christian School) brought 11 points off the bench while dishing out three assists. Michael Baskerville (Damascus, MD/Damascus) and Mason Bush (Pittsburgh, PA/Seneca Valley) secured eight rebounds apiece.

"Justin Sheetz came through big time down the stretch, and Mason, Dwayne, and Mike really stepped up their rebounding in the second half, which was an issue in the first half," McGreal added.

Adrian got a game-high 20 points from Seth Logan, and Kendall Chrismon scored 17 points for the Bulldogs.

After Chrismon hit a three ball for Adrian in the game's opening minute, a layup by Jones and two baskets from Claar helped put Penn State Altoona up, 6-3. Another bucket from Jones at 15:29 made it 10-5, and Jarrett Gardner's (Live Oak, FL/Suwannee) basket upped the Lions' lead to six, 14-8, at 13:45. The Bulldogs closed the gap to one, but Penn State Altoona boosted its lead back to six, as a Bush layup at 6:35 made it 23-17. Claar's layup at 4:19 kept the difference at six, 27-21.

Adrian overtook Penn State Altoona's lead in the closing minutes of the half, however. Reed Schilling's basket at 1:59 trimmed the Lions' advantage to one, 29-28, and layups from Chrismon helped Adrian to a 32-29 halftime lead.

Adrian carried its momentum into the second half, when the Bulldogs opened the period on an 8-0 run. Foul shots by Nick Seifert at the 16:48 mark gave Adrian an 11-point advantage, 40-29.

Penn State Altoona whittled away at its deficit to keep things close. White capped a 7-0 run by the Lions at the 14:12 mark, when he completed a three-point play to make it a four-point game, 40-36. White's trey nearly three minutes later kept the difference at four, 47-43, and Claar connected from beyond the arc at 8:57 to cut the Adrian lead to one, 47-46.

Adrian created a little breathing room for itself, increasing its lead to 55-48 following a Logan three-pointer at 5:14. Josh Jordan's basket at 3:36 set the Bulldogs' advantage at six, 57-51.

But Penn State Altoona worked its way back again, this time snatching its first lead since the first half. A Sheetz three-pointer and two Jones free throws narrowed the gap to one, 57-56, and Sheetz's steal and layup at 3:09 put the Lions in front, 58-57. Adrian jumped back ahead briefly on a Logan three-pointer, but Sheetz's basket at 2:04 gave Penn State Altoona a 61-60 lead.

After two more Jones foul shots, Sheetz made another three-pointer to give Penn State Altoona a five-point cushion, 66-61, with 1:18 to play. Sheetz made a layup at 1:04, and the Lions added points on free throws from White and Bush over the final 34 seconds to help secure a four-point triumph.

"Great team win to start the season," said McGreal. "Now we have to get ready for a step up in competition in tomorrow night's championship game!"