WAYNESBURG, Pa. (Feb. 15) – The Waynesburg University men's basketball team hosted Washington & Jefferson on Wednesday night at the Rudy Marisa Fieldhouse for a pivotal Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) matchup. The two rivals battled tooth-and-nail over 40 physical minutes and with less than 10 seconds remaining in the game, the Yellow Jackets held a 56-55 lead.
 
A jumper by junior guard Kendall Paige put the home team up by a point with 11 points showing on the game clock. The Presidents were able to get the in-bound pass into play and raced down the court. W&J somehow got an off-balanced layup to fall, giving the visitors a 57-56 lead with just four seconds left in the game.
 
The Jackets advanced the ball into the forecourt, but a last-second jumper by senior guard Timmy Kaiser missed the mark, sending Waynesburg to another frustrating mark. The defeat, which was the teams sixth by a single basket this year, eliminated the Orange and Black from the upcoming PAC tournament.
 
The entire first half played out as a back-and-forth thriller between the two teams. The first 20 minutes of action featured four lead changes and six ties before the halftime break. W&J (4-20, 4-13) went into the locker room with a slim 27-25 edge.
 
The Presidents scored the first two baskets out of the second period to expand their lead to 31-25. However, Waynesburg (6-18, 4-13) responded with its best offensive run of the game that finally put some distance between itself and W&J.
 
Kaiser got things going with an old-fashioned three-point play that made the score 31-28. Junior wing Jon Knab followed with a three-pointer on his team's next possession to tie the score at 31-31. A President turnover led to another Jacket trey, this one coming from sophomore wing Clay Carper. Another W&J turnover led to a layup by junior forward Marcus Wallace that put the Jackets ahead 36-31.
 
The run continued with another Knab basket, this one a two-pointer. After the Presidents slowed the run with a pair of foul shots, another field goal from Knab and a pair of free throws from freshman guard Frank Boziscevic gave the home team the largest advantage of the game for either squad at 42-33 with 12:55 showing on the clock.
 
Unfortunately, W&J went on a 14-2 run of its own over the next seven minutes of action to regain the lead at 47-44. Momentum swung back to the Orange and Black, as an 8-0 surge put Waynesburg back in the driver's seat at 52-47 with just over three minutes left in the contest.
 
The evening's home stretch featured five lead changes as the opponents traded baskets and free throws over a tense final 180 seconds of action. Unfortunately, by the time the final buzzer sounded, it was W&J that celebrated in the final men's basketball game at the Rudy Marisa Fieldhouse of the season.
 
Waynesburg countered eight President three-pointers by going 15-of-18 at the foul line. W&J attempted and made just one free throw on the night.
 
Knab led all players with a game-high 18 points on seven-of-13 shooting from the floor. Wallace chipped in 10 points on the night, while Kaiser added eight points and a game-high four assists.
 
The Yellow Jackets wrap up the 2016-17 season on Saturday with a road trip to Geneva. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.