Men’s Basketball picks up first AMCC win in barnburner at Pitt Greensburg

GREENSBURG, Pa. --- With just tenths of a second remaining on the clock, junior guard Byron Gaskins (Woodbridge, Va./Christ Chapel Academy) sank three free throws to help lift Carlow University men's basketball to a 71-70 Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference victory over Pitt Greensburg on the road Wednesday night.

Trailing 68-65, Nehemiah Brazil (Pittsburgh, Pa./Nazareth Prep HS) landed a three-pointer to tie the game with 20 seconds left in regulation. The Bobcats (3-6, 0-3 AMCC) hit a jumper to regain the lead, but a subsequent foul on Gaskin's three-point attempt in the next possession put him at the line with just .5 seconds on the clock.

Gaskins nailed all three shots, earning Carlow (2-6, 1-0 AMCC) its first AMCC victory of the season.

Brazil and Adnan Sbai (Camp Hill, Pa./East Pennsboro Area HS/Seton Hill University) led the Celtics with 19 points apiece, while Riley Comforti (Scottdale, Pa./Southmoreland HS) added 10 points, four assists and two steals.

Although Pitt Greensburg tied the score several times, Carlow led almost the entire first half of the game and took a 44-39 lead into intermission.

Both teams tied the score and traded leads well over a dozen times throughout the second half until the very end. Carlow outscored the Bobcats 10-8 through the final seven minutes of regulation, culminating in Gaskin's three foul shots to end the game.

Despite the outcome, Pitt Greensburg saw better stats lines, outrebounding Carlow 40-30, and outscoring the Celtics 38-28 in the paint and 20-12 off the bench.

Trent Rozich led the Bobcats with 17 points, and three other Pitt Greensburg players contributed double figure points in the effort.

The Celtics return to action in the new year with a 2 p.m. game at Frostburg State Jan. 2.