Gannon men's and women's basketball earn first NCAA playoff wins in 10 years

Both Gannon basketball teams have received plenty of recognition this season as they are both ranked in the top five in the national rankings.

The Golden Knights continued to earn that praise as both the men's and women's basketball teams earned their first NCAA playoff wins since 2014 on Friday in the NCAA Division II first round at the Hagerty Family Events Center.

The Gannon women (33-2) had four players score in double digits to beat West Virginia State (21-11), while the men (30-2) broke a 37-year-old program record by scoring 97 points in an NCAA playoff game in a 97-63 rout of Lincoln (17-14).

Both teams move on to the NCAA Division II second round on Saturday. The women start a doubleheader at HFEC at 5 p.m. with a PSAC championship game rematch against Lock Haven, while the men play West Liberty at 7:30 p.m.

Overcoming a slow start

Not much was going right for the Gannon women in the first quarter as the Golden Knights fell behind 23-10 and had nine turnovers in the first 10 minutes.

The Golden Knights, however, have plenty of experience in big games.

“They definitely sped us up in the first quarter by subbing in five at a time and pressuring us,” said Gannon leader Sam Pirosko. “Once we figured out we can handle their pressure and we figured out our spacing we were fine. A big part of it is facing that pressure in practice from the practice players.”

Gannon went on a 29-8 run to end the first half and take a 39-31 lead into the locker room at halftime.

“I was really happy with the way our team responded to a tough first quarter,” said coach Cleve Wright. “We regathered ourselves and showed a lot of resilience, especially on the defensive end. We've been pretty good on defense this year.”

The Golden Knights shut down the Yellow Jackets for the rest of the game and used a balanced offensive attack to secure the win. The last time Gannon won an NCAA playoff game was a 76-70 win over Shaw in 2014 at Edinboro. In 2013, the Golden Knights won the Atlantic Regional and played in the Elite Eight in San Antonio.

“Winning in the NCAA tournament and winning period is a very special thing and you want to enjoy it,” Wright said. “We're very happy to get a chance to play again on Saturday.”

Pirosko had 17 points and nine rebounds for Gannon, while Bri Claxon had 17 points and five rebounds, McKel Nation had 16 points and five rebounds and Kate Ratliff added 11 points and five assists.

“It's really nice to have multiple players step up,” Claxon said. “Anyone on our team can step up and have a great night. We have confidence in each other to get out and do what we like to do.”

Destiny Fields led West Virginia State with 18 points, while West Middlesex grad Emily Anthony added a season-high six points.

Records continue to fall

The Gannon men have shattered all kinds of program records this year with an explosive offense. The Golden Knights have also had high-scoring teams in the NCAA tournament tournament, including the 1987 and 1988 teams that each scored 93 points in one game.

On Friday, this year's version of Gannon outscored everyone in the past. The Golden Knights, who broke the program record with 140 points in the first game of the season, broke the program record with 97 points. The previous record happened twice as the 1987 Golden Knights beat New Hampshire 93-81 in the NCAA quarterfinals and the 1988 team beat California (Pa.) 93-75 in the second round of the East Regional.

“These guys have done a pretty good job this season etching their names into the history books,” said Gannon first-year coach Jordan Fee.

Despite 14 turnovers in the first half, Lincoln hung around and trailed just 49-35 at the half. Gannon, however, played with more energy and outrebounded the Lions by 17 in the second half to pull away.

“I'm impressed but not surprised with the way we played after seeing those guys in November,” Fee said. “They are a better team than they were back then and we're definitely a better team.”

Bakir Cleveland led Lincoln with 12 points and Ahmir Moore had 10 as the Lions shot just 31.3 percent from the field in the second half.

“We trust each other with the ball and moved the ball well,” said Gannon standout Josh Omojafo who had two dunks including one alley-oop dunk. “The defense shifted on us a lot but we adjusted to everything.”

Ernest Shelton led the Golden Knights with 17 points, followed by Omojafo with 16, Lyle Tipton with 14 and Zach Hobbs and Mike Montano had 12 apiece.

Gannon played in front of another near-sellout crowd and fed off its energy in the second half.

“It's really important having homecourt advantage these first three games,” Tipton said. “It felt like the whole city was here.”

Contact Tom Reisenweber at treisenweber@timesnews.com. Follow him on X @ETNreisenweber.

This article originally appeared on Erie Times-News: Gannon basketball earn first NCAA playoff wins in 10 years