BEAVER FALLS, Pa. (Feb. 8) – The Waynesburg University men's basketball team took part in its first road game of the season on Monday. The Yellow Jackets played right with host Geneva, but came out on the wrong end of a 78-72 showdown with the Golden Tornadoes.
 
Sophomore point guard Ryan Felberg (Twinsburg, Ohio / Twinsburg) went off for a game-high 21 points while playing a game-high 33 minutes for Waynesburg (0-2, 0-2). He added seven rebounds, two assists and three steals for the visitors. Junior forward Isaiah Alonzo (Chandler, Arizona / Tri-City Christian Academy) filled up the stat sheet with 20 points and a contest-high 14 rebounds over 29 minutes on the floor.
 
An Alonzo jumper 8:19 into the game put the Jackets ahead 18-12. Roughly five minutes later, the 6-10 standout knocked down another field goal that moved Waynesburg ahead by nine (28-19), which represented its largest advantage of the game. Geneva (1-1, 1-1) started a 18-7run at that point and with just over a minute remaining until halftime, the Golden Tornadoes led 37-35. That was also the score when the two teams broke for their respective locker rooms.
 
Unfortunately, Geneva controlled the vast majority of the final 20 minutes of play. The GT's outscored the Jackets 27-18 and with five minutes showing on the clock, the home team held a 64-53 advantage. However, Waynesburg didn't give up the fight and, following a Felberg three-pointer, still had victory within reach as it trailed 76-72 with 21 seconds left to play.
 
Unfortunately, a pair of late Golden Tornado free throws sealed the win.
 
Ultimately, the game was decided at the free throw line and behind the three-point arc. Geneva went 16-for-23 at the charity stripe, while the Jackets countered with eight makes in 16 tries. The home team drilled 10-of-26 treys. Waynesburg connected on six-of-27 attempts from long range.
 
Those shooting differentials were countered by a 49-34 Waynesburg edge on the boards. Both squads were careful to protect the basketball and committed just nine turnovers each in the conference clash.
 
The Jackets are back on the road for Wednesday's PAC showdown at Thiel. Tipoff is scheduled for 6 p.m.