PITTSBURGH, Pa. (Jan. 3) – The Waynesburg University men's basketball team carried over its recent hot play from the non-Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) portion of its schedule when it traveled to Chatham on Wednesday night. The Yellow Jackets won their sixth-straight game after dropping the Cougars 70-62.
 
Waynesburg (7-5, 3-2) didn't gain control of the contest until the final 8:30 of its clash with Chatham (4-8, 1-4). Trailing 53-48, the Jackets began a game-ending 22-9 run with a three-pointer by freshman guard Matt Popeck. Senior wing Jon Knab followed with the game-tying basket with 5:38 showing on the game clock.
 
Roughly two minutes later, Knab canned a go-ahead trey to make the score 56-53. A pair of Popeck free throws extended the Jacket advantage to 58-53, before the 10-0 surge came to an end with a Cougar three-pointer. However, Knab fired right back with a three-pointer of his own to rebuild the Orange and Black's five-point advantage.
 
Powered by four more Knab points and two more Popeck free throws to end the contest, Waynesburg rolled on to victory. The hard fought win avenged a pair of overtime defeats last season. The Jackets' current winning streak is their longest since taking nine-straight during the 2014-15 campaign.

"Our execution and confidence in our four-minute game has really grown and was on display tonight," said Waynesburg head coach Mark Christner. "It was great for our group to grind out a win at a tough place to play."
 
Waynesburg overcame a 33-29 halftime deficit by outscoring the Cougars 41-29 in the second period.
 
As they have done for most of the year, Knab and Popeck paced the Jacket offense. The pair scored 24 and 20 points, respectively, which were the top two totals in the game. Popeck also dished out a team-high five assists, swiped three steals and grabbed three rebounds. Knab pulled down four rebounds and helped out with three assists.
 
Senior wing Kendall Paige led the Jackets with seven rebounds. Senior forward Marcus Wallace finished just behind Paige with six boards.
 
The Waynesburg offense featured nine successful three-point tries in 23 attempts (39.1 percent). Six of those makes from downtown were collected in the second half.
 
The Yellow Jackets are back in action on Saturday, Jan. 6, when they travel to Westminster for a big time PAC showdown. The Titans are in third place in the conference standings, while Waynesburg currently sits in a three-way tie for fourth. Tipoff is scheduled for 3:30 p.m.