Mont Alto Men's Basketball Crowned PSUAC Champion after 68-66 Fayette Tilt

State College, Pa. - Through a nail-biting and fierce battle, the #1 Penn State Mont Alto men's basketball team was crowned the Penn State University Athletic Conference Men's Basketball Champion after the 68-66 decision over #2 Penn State Fayette, Tuesday night, in the Bryce Jordan Center.

The game was destined to be back-and-forth, since the two teams met earlier in the regular season, decided by Fayette, 89-82.

Mont Alto's Kevin Holston was first on the board for MA as Theo Remy and Jerome Evans both added points from the foul line. Evans continued with points in the paint as Siele Johnson matched him, tying the game at nine just five minutes into the game.

Fayette swelled 20-11 within the next few minutes as Jalen Smith and Remy tallied points for the #1 seed. Fayette continued to capitalize on the floor as Deshawn Franklin dropped a jumper. Evans extended two more from the free-throw line as Smith cut the deficit to just five with less than ten minutes to play in the first half. 

Mykel Barber,  Evans and Smith denoted consecutive layups to bring the game within 29-27 Fayette with six minutes remaining until halftime. Corey Meyers drained a three-pointer to bring Mont Alto right back in the game. Remy mirrored him with a trey as Mont Alto continued to take back the lead from Fayette with a pair of good layups from Evans and Johnson, 37-35 Mont Alto.

Cody Rydbom dropped two from the foul line as Fayette road out the first half of action, Fayette narrowly back on top 41-39.

Eager to get back into contention, Mont Alto's Smith kicked-off the second half of action with a layup and one. Evans and Barber dropped layups before Smith continued with a three-pointer, 51-46 Mont Alto. Smith silenced the lower seed with another Smith trey while Johnson continued with two good free-throws. Franklin drilled points outside the arc himself to extend Mont Alto over Fayette, 59-50, with 13 minutes left in regulation.

Fayette couldn't go down without a fight so the men worked their way back to a 59-58 one-point set back with plenty of time left on the clock. A Fayette Marvin Sidon layup swiped back the Fayette lead 60-59.

The two teams continued with their defense and limited action in the second half. Holston and Meyers added layups while the points became farther and farther apart. Evans and Smith each dropped a pair from the foul line to keep MA in front. A Theo Remy free-throw solidified the Mont Alto championship, 68-66. The number one seed obtained their first PSUAC Championship since 2001-2002.

Smith roped in a team-high double-double with 19 points and 15 rebounds with two assists, two blocks and a steal. Smith connected on 46.7% (7-of-15) from the floor as he added 75% (3-of-4) from the foul line alongside a pair of three-pointers. Evans followed him with a perfect 6-for-6 from the foul line with a double-double himself with 16 points, 11 boards, five assists and a block. Remy contributed seven points and seven rebounds with four assists and a steal. 

Nine Mont Alto Lions added buckets to the win, as the team polished off 37.5% (24-of-64) from the floor and 75% (15-of-20) from the foul line. Out-rebounding Fayette, Mont Alto grabbed 52-42 boards while capitalizing on 22 points off of 16 Fayette turnovers. Mont Alto denoted 36 points in the paint, 18 points off second-chance and two points on fast break. The back-and-forth game met at a tie 12 times as the lead changed 13 times.

Fayette's Luke Williams dropped a game-high 21 points with five rebounds, two steals and an assist. Cunningham didn't miss a moment of the game, as he pulled 18 points, seven boards, and one assist, steal and block each. The men dropped 22 buckets from the floor as the Roaring Lions added 76.5% (13-of-17) from the foul line.

Mont Alto is currently sitting at 22-5, 14-2 PSUAC as Fayette is 15-11, 13-3 PSUAC as both teams gear up for the United States Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA) National Championships. Fayette looks to play Central Maine CC at PSU Fayette on Wednesday, March 2nd at 6 p.m. as Mont Alto gears up to play Johnsoon and Wales (NC) on Thursday the 3rd at 12 p.m.