The Youngstown State men's basketball team scored the final nine points of the first half and proceeded to outscore Green Bay by 23 in the second half to win 95-65 on Saturday afternoon at Beeghly Center.
The Penguins improved to 22-7 overall and 14-4 in Horizon League play, and they remained in sole possession of first place in the conference standings with the victory. Green Bay dropped to 3-26 overall and 2-16 against the league.
Youngstown State celebrated its six senior student-athletes and three managers before the game, and four of the players reached double figures. Malek Green and Bryce McBride shared game-high honors with 17 points, Adrian Nelson scored 14, and Dwayne Cohill scored 13. Green and Nelson both grabbed nine rebounds, and Cohill dished out eight assists. Sixth-year Penguin Garrett Covington scored seven points, and fellow honoree Chris Shelton scored three points.
Youngstown State shot 53% for the game and better than 51% in both halves, and the Penguins held the Phoenix to 36.7% from the field. YSU was also plus-nine in turnover margin and outscored the visitors 27-11 off turnovers. With the big games by Green and Nelson, YSU also had a 48-20 edge in points in the paint.
The teams battled through seven ties and two lead changes before heading to the locker room, and Green Bay held the advantage longer than Youngstown State in the first half.
The Phoenix scored the first five points of the afternoon, and YSU's first field goal didn't come until Covington's layup at the 16:24 mark. The Penguins' first lead came at 15-14 when Rush hit a pair of 3-pointers in a span of 48 seconds, but Green Bay regrouped and matched its largest advantage at 21-15 with 10:46 on the clock.
Green scored six points during a 13-0 run that gave the Penguins a 28-21 lead, and YSU remained ahead until Green Bay took a 36-33 lead on a Randy Tucker free throw with 5:06 left. The final lead for the Phoenix was 39-37 on a 3-pointer by Clarence Cummings III just under two minutes later.
John Lovelace Jr. followed an offensive rebound by Covington with a 3-pointer that gave YSU a 40-39 advantage with 2:36 left in the first half, and the Penguins went on to run away with the game. McBride and Covington followed with 3s before the half to put YSU ahead 46-39, and the Penguins scored on three straight possessions early in the second half to extend their lead to 54-39. The margin remained in double digits the rest of the way.
Youngstown State's first 20-point advantage came when Green scored at the 12:47 mark to make the score 66-45, and the largest margin was 33 at 83-30 with 6:43 left. Nelson scored on a pass from McBride at the 3:32 mark to give YSU a 91-60 lead, and YSU Head Coach Jerrod Calhoun called timeout to give five of his seniors to opportunity to sub out together to a standing ovation.
Youngstown State begins the final week of the regular season at Robert Morris, Tuesday, Feb. 21. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. at the UPMC Events Center in Moon Township, Pa. and the game will be broadcast on 570 WKBN and ESPN+.
