MIDDLETOWN, Pa. – Donyae Baylor-Carroll poured in a season-high 42 points to lead Penn State Harrisburg's men's basketball team to a 92-79 victory over conference foe Penn College in United East Volt Division Semifinal action at the Capital Union Building on Monday night, Feb. 19.
Baylor-Carroll's point total is the second-highest of his career, second only to the 45 points he scored in an NCAA Tournament win over No. 6 Johns Hopkins in March of 2020. He added eight rebounds, six assists, six steals, and two blocks in Monday's victory. Nate Curry finished one rebound shy of a double-double with 17 points and nine rebounds, while Lance Douglas was the third player to reach double figures with 10 points.
The Lions (22-4) led by as many as nine points with 14:53 left to play following a Douglas 3-pointer but Penn College (10-16) answered with a 14-0 run that included a trio of triples to pull ahead 68-63 with 10:41 remaining. Baylor-Carroll responded with an old-fashioned 3-point play before three Curry free throws and an Isaiah Eggleston layup put the home team back in front 71-68 at the 6:59 mark.
Baylor-Carroll converted another layup to push the lead to five with 6:28 left before burying a 3-ball that stretched the lead to 76-69 with 5:30 to go. After the Wildcats pulled to within three, Baylor-Carroll knocked down a pair of free throws before Isaiah Milien and Curry added back-to-back layups to make it 82-73 with 3:33 remaining. The Lions kept the visitors at bay down the stretch before Baylor-Carroll gave Penn State Harrisburg its first double-digit lead in the final minute and Curry put the game on ice with a layup off a Milien find with 43 seconds to go.
Both teams shot better than 50 percent from the floor in the opening half and things were tied 47-47 at the break. The back-and-forth contest saw 13 lead changes in the first 20 minutes. Curry converted a layup through contact and converted the 3-point play with a free throw in the final minute before the Wildcats scored the final four points of the half.
NOTABLES
- The Lions shot a stout 58.2 percent from the field and an impressive 45 percent from 3-point range.
- Penn State Harrisburg shot 82.6 percent from the foul line, while the Wildcats went 17-of-20 from the charity stripe (85 percent).
- Penn College shot 43.8 percent from the floor and 31.6 percent from beyond the arc.
- The Lions finished with a 33-30 edge in rebounding.
- Baylor-Carroll poured in a season-high 42 points on 65.2 percent shooting (15-of-23) and 55.6 percent shooting from 3-point range (5-of-9). He was a perfect 7-for-7 from the foul line and added eight rebounds, six assists, six steals, and two blocks.
- Curry had a strong outing and flirted with a triple-double, finishing with 17 points on 85.7 percent shooting, nine rebounds, and six assists.
- Douglas racked up 10 points, three assists, three steals, three blocks, and a pair of rebounds.
- Eggleston chipped in with nine points, four assists, four blocks, and three boards off the bench.
- Milien and Alex Leiba finished with seven points apiece.
WHO'S NEXT?
The Lions will host St. Mary's (Md.) for the United East Volt Division Final on Wednesday night with a berth in the conference championship game on the line. Tip-off is set for 5 p.m.
STAY CONNECTED
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