YSU MEN'S BASKETBALL Penguins rally past Shawnee

After a slow first half, Youngstown State rolled to an 84-69 victory.
By PETE MOLLICA
VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF
YOUNGSTOWN -- Youngstown State men's basketball coach John Robic knew it could happen and sophomore Khari McQueen admitted it did, but even underestimating Shawnee State wasn't enough for the Penguins to lose.
The NAIA Division II Bears gave the Penguins problems in the first half, but once YSU woke up, the Bears were no match in an 84-69 victory before 1,512 fans Friday at Beeghly Center.
The Bears (6-2) outplayed the Penguins during the first 20 minutes, yet the half ended deadlocked at 36-36. YSU outscored the Bears 48-33 in the second half.
"I was disappointed in our effort tonight," Robic said. "Especially the way we've been practicing. We didn't give an all-out effort for one of the 40 minutes we played tonight."
Leading the Penguins
The Penguins (4-2) put four players in double figures led by junior center Adam Baumann and junior TeJay Anderson with 13 points apiece, while sophomore guard Doug Underwood added 11 and McQueen came off the bench to score 10 points.
"Our defense was horrible inside in the first half," said McQueen. "Coach told us at halftime that we had to step it up in the second half and we did better."
The Bears' 6-6 center Adam Davenport had 16 of his 21 points in the first half as he also grabbed nine rebounds, five of them on the offensive boards, as the Bears led throughout the first 20 minutes.
"We shot the ball better tonight, but we still missed at least 15 layups," Robic said. "We still have to play a lot harder and more intense.
"We knew coming in that this was going to be a tough game to coach," he added. "These are the games that you have to bring out all the speeches."
The game's top scorer was Shawnee State's Antwain Lavender, who tossed in 27 points. The Bears came in averaging 89 points and more than 25 3-point shots a game. They took 20 against the Penguins, but hit on only four, their season low.
Penguins shot better
YSU was 33-of-68 from the field (48.5 percent) but 16-of-29 in the second half (55.2 percent). The Penguins outrebounded the Bears 35-34, with Anderson and Baumann getting six each. Davenport led all rebounders with 12.
The contest began in a tight battle before Lavender canned a 3-point shot to give the Bears a 12-9 lead, which they never relinquished the rest of the half. The Penguins scored the final four points of the half to deadlock the game at intermission.
The Penguins came out like a different team in the second half hitting four of their first five shots and regaining the lead, 45-40.
They built the lead to 55-44 with 14:09 remaining on a dunk by sophomore Brian Radakovich. The Penguins were still up by 10 with 8:55 remaining after Lavender hit his third 3-pointer of the game.
McQueen ignites rally
McQueen then came off the bench and scored six of the Penguins' next eight points and freshman Andy Jahnke hit a 3-point goal, and the Penguins were quickly up 80-61 with 3:41 left.
YSU got the lead to 82-62, but the Bears scored the next nine points before junior Bill Mallernee scored with 15 seconds remaining to end the game.
The Penguins now go on the road for two straight games, beginning Wednesday at Duquesne, and then follow that on Saturday with a trip to Kansas City to play UMKC, an old Mid-Continent Conference opponent.
The Penguins are currently on a 16-game road losing streak dating back to February of 2001.
mollica@vindy.com