IMMACULATA, Pa. – The Immaculata men's basketball team came up just short in a thrilling comeback attempt, falling 88-86 to Gwynedd Mercy on Saturday afternoon at Alumnae Hall.
Immaculata trailed by as many as 18 points late in the second half, facing a 65-47 deficit with 9:22 remaining. The Mighty Macs responded with a furious 20-6 run to pull within four at 71-67 with 5:12 left. After continuing to chip away, Immaculata briefly grabbed an 82-81 lead with 20 seconds remaining, but Gwynedd Mercy closed the game at the free-throw line to escape with the win.
Dylan Crews led the Mighty Macs with 22 points on 8-for-15 shooting, adding three rebounds and two blocked shots.
Christian Chambers finished with 13 points and five rebounds, while
Domenic Vacchiano contributed 10 points, four rebounds, and a game-high six steals.
With the loss, Immaculata falls to 1-12 overall and 0-2 in Atlantic East Conference play. Gwynedd Mercy improves to 9-4 overall and 2-0 in conference action.
HOW IT HAPPENED VS GWYNEDD MERCY
- Gwynedd Mercy jumped out to a quick 17-4 lead with 15:16 remaining in the first half of play.
- Mandon Seapoe hit a jump shot, Christian Chambers followed with a three-pointer, and Robbie Conyer scored on a layup as Immaculata closed the lead to 23-15 with 10:26 remaining in the half.
- Domenic Vacchiano hit a pair of three-pointers late in the final minute of the first half as Immaculata trailed 45-33 at halftime.
- In the second half, Dylan Crews and Christian Chambers hit three-pointers, and Robbie Conyer scored on a layup as Immaculata used a 20-6 run to cut the lead to 71-67 with 5:12 remaining in the game.
- With Immaculata trailing by 82-71 with one minute remaining in the game, Bowen Gugger scored on a tipin off a miss by Jayden Williams, and Dylan Crews scored on a driving layup drawing a foul and completed the three-point play at the foul line to cut the lead to 82-76.
- Crews followed with another old fashioned three-point play with a driving layup plus the and one to close the score to 82-79 with thirty seconds remaining.
- Domenic Vacchiano then got a steal, and after a time out, Crews scored again on a layup to pull Immaculata within one point at 82-81 with twenty seconds remaining.
- Gwynedd Mercy made six straight free throws to keep Immaculata at bay.
- Domenic Vacchiano scored on a tipin with 0:01 remaining to pull Immaculata within two points, with one second remaining.
- Gwynedd Mercy held on to earn the win 88-86.
INSIDE THE NUMBERS
- Dylan Crews led Immaculata with 22 points, shooting 8-for-15 from the field, with three rebounds, and two blocked shots.
- Christian Chambers scored 13 points, with five rebounds, and one steal.
- Domenic Vacchiano scored 10 points, with four rebounds, one blocked shot, and six steals.
- Bowen Gugger scored nine points, with eight rebounds, and one assist.
- Mandon Seapoe scored eight points, with two steals.
- Robbie Conyer scored eight points, with four rebounds, and added two steals.
- As a team Immaculata shot 44.3% from the field, 29.6% from beyond the arc, and 80% from the stripe. They had 14 second chance points, 40 points in the paint, and scored 18 points off turnovers.
UP NEXT
The Immaculata men's basketball team will be back in action on Wednesday, January 14, when they host Saint Elizabeth for an AEC game at Alumnae Hall at 6 p.m.
