Hain powers Penguins to road win over Niagara

Staff report

Niagara University, N.Y.

Bobby Hain fell one assist short of the first triple-double in Youngstown State men’s basketball history as the Penguins beat Niagara 88-70 on Saturday.

Hain settled for his third double-double of the season with 16 points, 11 rebounds and nine assists. The senior also blocked two shots.

YSU (3-4) won its third straight game with a run late in the second half to pull away from Niagara (2-5) at Gallagher Center.

Sophomore Francisco Santiago scored 15 points with six rebounds while junior Jorden Kaufman posted 14 points on 7-of-10 shooting from the field. Junior Matt Donlan and freshman Latin Davis added 12 and 11 points, respectively

Emile Blackman led Niagara with 23 points, Matt Scott scored 13 points and Chris Barton and Justin Satchell had 11 and 10 points, respectively.

The Penguins led by just one, 65-64, but used a 17-0 run over a seven-minute span to boost their lead to 18, 82-64, with 4:09 left in the game. Jumpers by Santiago and Kaufman and a 3-pointer by Santiago and a jumper by Hain pushed the lead to double figures, 74-64, with 8:13 to go.

A pair of 3-pointers by Davis and Donlan and a layup by Hain gave the Penguins an 82-64 lead with just over four minutes to go.

The Penguins held the Purple Eagles scoreless for nearly nine minutes and without a field goal for nearly 10 minutes. Barton made two free throws with 2:25 left to end the Purple Eagles’ scoring drought and a layup by Blackman with 1:26 to go was their first made field goal since the 11:17 mark.

In the first half, the Penguins held a lead of no more than four points for the first nine minutes before jumping out to an eight-point lead 32-24 with 7:20 to go on a tip-in by Kaufman.

The Purple Eagles, who made eight first-half 3-pointers and 10 for the game, used a 12-3 run to take a 36-35 lead at the 4:18 mark.

Niagara pushed its lead to three points, 42-39, before Brett Frantz tied the game with a 3-pointer and a tip-in by Hain and a layup by Sidney Umude gave the Penguins a 46-42 lead at the half.

For the game, the Penguins shot 49.3 percent from the floor and made 10 3-pointers. YSU also committed just four turnovers and had 18 assists.

The Penguins host Robert Morris on Wednesday at Beeghly Center. Tip-off is set for 7:05 p.m.