WAYNESBURG, Pa. (Feb. 15) – The Waynesburg University men's basketball team hosted Saint Vincent Saturday afternoon in a Presidents' Athletic Conference matchup. The Yellow Jackets jumped out to a 24-6 lead early in the first half. Unfortunately, the Bearcats got hot and eventually defeated the Yellow Jackets 72-60, spoiling the Orange and Black's senior day.
 
Senior guard Frank Bozicevic (Monroeville, Pa. / Gateway) led the way in scoring for Waynesburg, dropping 19 points on five-of-15 shooting, including three-of-seven from three-point range. He also was successful on six-of-seven free-throw attempts, adding four steals, four assists and three rebounds.
 
Senior forward Brennan Smith (New Cumberland, W.Va. / Oak Glen) finished with a double-double by notching 12 points and bringing down 10 rebounds. Sophomore forward Isaiah Alonzo (Chandler, Ariz. / Tri-City Christian Academy) came up just shy of a double-double, finishing with 12 points and nine boards.
 
Waynesburg (4-19, 4-10) started out the game on a 7-0 run before the Bearcats (12-11, 7-7) tallied their first points. The Yellow Jackets didn't let up and took their 18-point lead with 12:22 left in the first half. Bozicevic had nine of his 19 points during the stretch, as well as each of his four assists.
 
However, over the next six-and-a-half minutes, Saint Vincent chipped away at the deficit and held the Yellow Jackets to just three points. By the end of the run, the Bearcats had outscored Waynesburg 21-3 to tie the game at 27-27 with 5:55 left in the first half.
 
The two teams traded leads over the final minutes of the period before Saint Vincent moved ahead with 1:49 showing on the clock in the opening 20 minutes (34-32). Waynesburg trailed 39-34 when the first-half buzzer sounded.
 
The Yellow Jackets came out strong in the opening minutes of the second half, though, and regained the lead at 40-39 with 17:45 remaining in the half. Saint Vincent answered with a go-ahead field goal and grabbed a lead it wouldn't relinquish for the remainder of the contest.
 
Waynesburg eventually cut its deficit back down to three points (59-56) with just under four minutes left, but a quick 6-0 run by the Bearcats shut down the late comeback attempt for good.
 
As it stands, The Yellow Jackets hold the eighth-and-final spot for the upcoming PAC playoffs. However, Bethany trails Waynesburg by just a game in the standings and beat the Jackets earlier this season.
 
Depending on results of Waynesburg's final two games, as well as the results of many other teams in the conference, the Yellow Jackets could finish the season anywhere from sixth to ninth place in the standings.
 
Waynesburg will be back in action against Thiel, who is currently one win and one spot ahead of the Yellow Jackets in the PAC standings, this Wednesday for a road tilt with the Tomcats. Tip-off is set for 7:30 p.m. Waynesburg's final game of the season will be Saturday against Bethany at 3:30 p.m.