Eagles Overcome Slow Start In Convincing Win

HUNTINGDON, Pa. - The first five minutes of the game might not have been pretty, but the Juniata College men's basketball team recovered nicely with an 18-6 run that spanned nearly eight minutes and propelled the Eagles to a 73-47 win over Penn State Altoona, Wednesday night at the Kennedy Sports + Recreation Center in Huntingdon, Pa.

Juniata improved to 6-4 with the victory, while Penn State Altoona fell to 6-5 on the season.

Neither team was able to generate much offense in the early going, and score was tied at 4-4 at the 14:22 mark of the opening frame.
Brian Cannon (Fallston, Md./Fallston) broke the deadlock with a jumper, launching Juniata's run that gave the Eagles complete command of the game. Eric Mueseler (Latrobe, Pa./Latrobe), Jeff Berkey (Stoystown, Pa./Shanksville-Stonycreek) and Kyle Opitz (Gibsonia, Pa./Pine Richland) all connected on three-pointers during the Eagle run, accounting for three of Juniata's six treys on the night.
Juniata's first-half lead reached its widest at 16 points, 30-14 at the 4:48 mark of the half, following a pair of layups by Brent Ferko (Sarver, Pa./Freeport).

A 13-4 Eagle run to open the second half further stretched the Juniata lead to 44-23 with 15:35 remaining, and a 9-0 surge later in the second stanza widened the gap to 53-27 at the 8:40 mark. An Opitz trey with 3:45 on the clock put the Eagles in front 67-37, Juniata's widest lead of the game.

Four Eagles finished in double figures, with Cannon's 19 points pacing the offense. Ferko and David Thompson (Altoona, Pa./Altoona) each tallied 12 points, while Opitz chipped in with 10 points. Juniata tallied 15 second-chance points, after out-rebounding the Lions 41-32.

Penn State Altoona was led by Dziabo Quintin and Kirk Peters with 14 points each. The Lions were 0-11 from three-point range, and finished the game 20-of-54 (37.0%) from the field.

Juniata returns to action on Saturday night, January 5, when it host Carnegie Mellon University. Game time is slated for 7:00 p.m. at the Kennedy Sports + Recreation Center.