YSU skid at Nutter reaches 8 games

The Penguins lost again at Wright State, 66-55, for their ninth loss this season.

VINDICATOR STAFF/WIRE REPORT

DAYTON — Youngstown State’s men’s basketball team continued its struggles against Wright State at the Nutter Center.

The Penguins lost here for the eighth straight time, 66-55, Thursday night. Youngstown State hasn’t beaten Wright State since 1994, before joining the Horizon League.

YSU (6-9, 2-3 HL) trailed by only a point, 49-48, with just over seven minutes to play, but were outscored 13-4 over the next six minutes and could not recover.

“It was very disappointing. We had our opportunity and didn’t take advantage of it,” said YSU coach Jerry Slocum. “We had it down to one point then missed three layups went 2-for-8 from the foul line and let them pull away.

“I thought we played hard and I thought the kids battled, but it was a disappointing finish,” he added.

The Penguins put three players in double figures, led by seniors Byron Davis and John Barber with 13 points each; Barber also had eight rebounds. Junior Jack Liles added 10 points.

The Penguins hit 23-of-54 shots from the field, but were only 9-of-23 in the second half. The big difference was at the free throw line, where the Penguins were just 4-of-11, all in the second half, while Wright State finished 15-of-22.

The Raiders (9-5, 2-3) also put three players in double digits, led by Jordan Pleiman and Vaughn Duggins with 16 points each. Pleiman had 14 points in the second half.

The score was tied six times and the lead changed hands four times during the first half. The Penguins took their last lead with just under eight minutes left in the half on back-to-back buckets by Liles and Dwight Holmes for a 24-20 advantage.

Duggins hit two straight 3-point shots to pull the Raiders in front to stay, 26-24. The Raiders led by seven points before Davis hit a 3-point shot at the buzzer to close the gap to 35-31 at the intermission.

The Penguins stayed close through the first 12 minutes of the second half and got to within one point, 47-46, on Holmes’ free throw. They still trailed by one, 49-48, before the Raiders went on an 8-2 run and then a 9-2 run that put the contest away.

The Penguins continue on the road Saturday afternoon when they travel to Detroit to meet the Titans at 3:30 p.m.