MOON TOWNSHIP, Pa. -- The Geneva College men's basketball team jumped up two levels when it traveled to NCAA Division I Robert Morris on Wednesday night for some Thanksgiving Eve basketball, and the Golden Tornadoes hung with the Colonials for a half before Robert Morris pulled away for a 102-62 victory. Robert Morris, who was coming off a four-point loss at Marquette on Saturday, improved to 2-6, while Geneva fell to 2-4.
The matchup was the first time these two schools separated by just 30 miles had played each other. It was also the first time Geneva had played against a Division I school since 2015 when Geneva lost at Youngstown State, 99-58. The road trip gave the Golden Tornadoes an opportunity to play in Robert Morris' brand new UPMC Events Center.
Despite going up against Division I athletes, Geneva hung with Robert Morris in the first half. Senior
Noah Damazo (Beaver Falls, Pa./Blackhawk) got Geneva on the board early with a jumper. The Colonials built their lead to 15-5, but freshman
Lyle Tipton (Glenside, Pa./Phil-Mont Christian) scored three straight buckets to pull Geneva to within 15-11. Robert Morris pushed the lead back out to 24-13, but back-to-back baskets by Damazo cut the deficit to 27-21 with 7:12 remaining. The Colonials responded with a run to go ahead 40-26, but a three-pointer by sophomore
Matt Veynovich (Pompono Beach, Fla./Highlands Academy) sent Geneva to the halftime break trailing 40-29.
Robert Morris turned up its full court pressure to begin the second half, and its athleticism overwhelmed Geneva and forced a much faster pace of play, and the Colonials began to pull away. Robert Morris began the half with an 11-2 run in the first two minutes, as the Golden Tornadoes struggled to break through the Colonials' press. From there it was all Robert Morris, and it extended its lead throughout the half before finishing off the 102-62 victory.
One big bright spot for Geneva was the play of Tipton, who scored a career-high 18 points on 8-of-13 (61.5%) shooting from the floor, including 2-of-2 from three-point range, and regularly challenged the larger frontline he was going against. Geneva's leading scorer, senior
Ethan Moose (New Castle, Pa./Neshannock), scored 13 points to go with five rebounds, while Damazo also reached double figures with 11 points. The Golden Tornadoes shot well from the floor, finishing 27-of-53 (50.9%), but Geneva turned it over 29 times against the Robert Morris pressure. Josh Williams scored a game-high 21 points to lead the Colonials.
"Tonight was a great experience for our guys to go up against a Division I basketball program like Robert Morris," said Head Coach
Jeff Santarsiero. "I'm happy with our execution and the way our guys battled all night. We fought the whole way and never gave up. Lyle had a great night, and our veterans really played well too. We're excited now to turn our attention to conference play next week. Our guys will get a short break and then we will get right back at it on Saturday."
The Golden Tornadoes don't get much time to enjoy the Thanksgiving break. The team will get a day off tomorrow and then will return on Friday in preparation for Geneva's home game against Franciscan on Saturday beginning at 2:00 p.m.
Geneva College is a Christ-centered academic community that provides a comprehensive education to equip students for faithful and fruitful service to God and neighbor. Offering over 115 traditional undergraduate majors and programs, fully online Adult Degree Programs and high-demand graduate degrees, Geneva's programs are recognized for their high quality. U.S. News & World Report ranks Geneva as a Top Three Best Value Regional University with one of the top engineering programs in the nation. Adhering to the truth of Scripture, a Geneva education is grounded in God's Word as well as in a core curriculum designed to prepare students vocationally to think, write and communicate well in today's world.
