Men beat Wolves, stay in hunt for PSAC title

Kutztown Golden Bears 79
Cheyney Wolves 71

Recap:
The Golden Bears came up huge in a tough road environment on Saturday when they took care of business against division-leading Cheyney. KU came out strong and played consistent basketball until the final whistle. With the eight point win, the Golden Bears will likely host a first round home playoff game and are still alive for the PSAC East Championship. KU is now 17-8 overall and 9-2 in the division with one game to play in the regular season.

Key Stat:
Most statistical categories were very close, but the big difference was the obvious one if you saw the game—free throw shooting. KU was 29-of-36 from the charity stripe thanks to 29 personal fouls by Cheyney. Two CU starters fouled out and two other regulars had 4 fouls a piece. Meanwhile, the Golden Bears committed just 17 fouls, leading to an 11-of-15 day at the free throw line for Cheyney.

Key Moment:
The Golden Bears trailed 69-68 with just under 3 minutes to play, but David Ben gave KU the lead for good with a steal and a pair of free throws at the 2:41 mark. He then swiped another steal and hit two more from the charity stripe to extend the KU lead to three. Ryan Washington then made a layup, Ben hit another free throw, and Woodlin hit a pair from the stripe to all but seal the deal.

Golden Performance:
Stevid Bennis. Get it? Stephen Dennis and David Ben carried the load for KU—just not at the same time. Dennis scored all 16 of his points in the first half, but was no where to be found in the second half—at least on the score sheet. Meanwhile, Ben had just 3 points at the break, but took over in the second half, also scoring 16 points for the game. Dennis also added 6 rebounds, while Ben had 5 steals and 2 assists.

Not-So-Golden Performance:
I haven’t really enjoyed giving this award out after wins, so I’m going to cease doing that for now. With that said, I’m still going to have to give someone or something a hard time. So, here it goes. If you were at the game, I think you’ll agree with me when I say I think Cheyney needs a new basketball arena…

Impact:
The KU win, coupled with a Millersville loss to East Stroudsburg yesterday, opened up a mansion full of playoff windows—each window filled with a different seeding possibility. KU will likely host a first round playoff game and the PSAC East title is still up for grabs between KU, MU, and CU. I will make a separate post with the playoff scenarios so check that out later. The Golden Bears will play a non-conference game at home against Columbia Union on Wednesday before hosting ESU on Saturday to complete the regular season.

NOTE: When I initially posted this article, I was under the impression that KU had in fact clinched a first round home playoff game. Since that time, the same source who gave me the initial information has corrected his stance and has now realized that KU could in fact end up on the road in the first road. More details later.