Thanks to a 41-point game by senior guard Ryan Clamage, Men’s Basketball defeated Carnegie Mellon 78–70 this past Friday.
With the win, the ‘Jackets ended their two-game losing streak and improved to a solid 12–3 on the season. The team has made sure to keep the Palestra a fortress as they are 8–0 at home. The ‘Jackets also improved to 2–2 in the UAA, handing Carnegie Mellon its first in-conference loss.
“We’re excited. It’s good to back home when school is in session,” Clamage said before the game. “We had a good start but now UAA is a different monster.”
Sophomore center Ryan Algier believes he knows the reason for the slow start in the conference.”[W]e get into a rhythm, feeling good about ourselves and we can get a little bit content with where we are at and we just go to keep pushing each other,” he said. The team started 10–1, but failed to adjust to the competition of the conference in recent weeks.
The game was fairly well attended, with students, parents, and alums scattered around the stands.
It started highly competitive with only one missed shot in the first six minutes. Carnegie Mellon tried to counter the speed of senior guard Jacob Wittig by playing full court press, but the ‘Jackets responded with some quick passing and strategically placed screens. The ‘Jackets got into a rhythm, and they pulled ahead in the last five minutes of the first half, with a score of 40–32 at halftime.
The ‘Jackets maintained their lead until midway through the second half, when Carnegie Mellon regained a lead with an 11–0 run that put the ‘Jackets down 52–49.
The score remained close until the team slowly pulled ahead during a 14–8 run in which Clamage was the only scorer for the ‘Jackets. Carnegie Mellon did not have the time to respond, and the ‘Jackets won, 78–70.
Clamage ended the game with a career-high 41 points, the fifth most in a single game in school history. He also grabbed six rebounds and scored on 64 percent of his field goal attempts. Senior guard Jacob Wittig had a strong game as well, scoring 10 points and recording six assists.
The ‘Jackets were also helped by Carnegie Mellon’s sloppy play, Turning the ball over 20 times, compared to 12 turnovers by the ‘Jackets, Carnegie Mellon also fouled eight more times than the ‘Jackets did.
The team will look to continue their success in the next game against Case Western Reserve University on Monday.
