ALTOONA, Pa. – The Penn State Altoona men's basketball team fended off a strong challenge by visiting Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference opponent Pitt-Bradford on Saturday afternoon, securing their third conference win of the season with an 81-73 victory in Adler Arena.

After a sluggish first half by both teams, Penn State Altoona (7-7, 3-1 AMCC) took control in the second half, spearheaded by its offense. The Lions shot 75 percent (18-for-24) from the floor over the game's final 20 minutes, putting up 55 points in the period to outpace Pitt-Bradford (7-8, 1-3 AMCC).

"Big win today against another tough opponent in the conference. We didn't play our best offensive basketball in the first half, forcing stuff, taking quick shots in half court, and not sharing the ball, but our defense was probably the best it's been all year, which kept us in the game," said Penn State Altoona head coach David McGreal. "In the second half, we got back to Altoona basketball, pushing it on offense and shooting the ball, which translated to a 55-point half."

Mason Bush (Pittsburgh, PA/Seneca Valley) and Saivon Word (Upper Marlboro, MD/Frederick Douglass) each scored 15 points to lead Penn State Altoona in scoring, with Word also dishing out a game-high six assists. Dwayne Jones (Philadelphia, PA/Greater Johnstown) recorded his second double-double of the season with 14 points and a team-best 11 rebounds, and he also finished with a game-high four blocks.

Andruw Harman (Chesapeake, VA/Great Bridge) secured 10 rebounds while scoring six points and blocking three shots. Justin Sheetz (Eldersburg, MD/Liberty) brought nine points off the bench by hitting 3-of-4 from three-point range, and Robbie Hicks (Melbourne, FL/Rockledge) added eight points and three assists off the bench. Alex McClellan (York, PA/West York) and Jarrett Gardner (Live Oak, FL/Suwannee) contributed seven points apiece.

Pitt-Bradford was led in scoring by Jeremy Rodriguez, who finished with 19 points. Nathan Schneider scored 16 points and grabbed 11 rebounds, and Phillip Wallace had 14 points.

Penn State Altoona scored the game's first six points on a pair of three-pointers by Bush, but Pitt-Bradford outscored the Lions 12-2 over the next four-and-a-half minutes to establish a 12-8 advantage. Back-to-back three-pointers from Lennon Lindholm and Schneider helped the Panthers to a 20-15 lead by 8:30, before a Sheetz three-pointer and Jones layup evened the score 20-20 by 6:56. Jones sank a pair of foul shots at the 4:13 mark to give Penn State Altoona a 26-22 lead, but Pitt-Bradford kept the Lions off of the scoreboard over the remainder of the half while tacking five points on to its total, and the Panthers went into halftime with a narrow 27-26 advantage.

Pitt-Bradford maintained a slim lead through the opening minutes of the second half, until Penn State Altoona jumped ahead for good on Gardner's layup at 13:55. Hicks connected from three-point range at 10:51 to boost his team's lead to double digits, 49-38, and layups by Word on consecutive possessions extended the Lions' advantage to 12 points, 54-42, by the 9:15 mark. Bush's basket and free throw at 7:11 gave Penn State Altoona its largest lead of the afternoon, 61-47.

Pitt-Bradford responded with a push, outscoring the Lions 16-8 over the next four minutes to pull to within six, trimming the home team's lead to 69-63 with 3:08 to play. But Penn State Altoona did not allow the Panthers to make up any more ground, as the Lions got their lead back to as many as 14 points in the closing moments of the game.

"We have got to continue to improve, but it's good to get this win under our belts as we move forward in our conference slate," said McGreal. "We have a huge rivalry game this Wednesday at home versus Mount Aloysius, and we hope to have a great crowd there. Go Lions!"

Penn State Altoona will host nearby AMCC rival Mount Aloysius College this upcoming Wednesday, January 18 in Adler Arena. Tipoff is set for 7:00 p.m.