WAYNESBURG, Pa. (March 10) –  The Waynesburg University men's basketball team hosted Grove City for its final regular season game Wednesday evening. Junior guard Matt Popeck (Washington, Pa. / Washington) scored a career-high 39 points in the contest, but ultimately the Yellow Jackets were unable to overcome an early deficit and fell to the Wolverines 77-65.
 
Popeck's 39 points were the most by any player in any game played by a team in the Presidents' Athletic Conference since the 2013-14 season. As for Waynesburg history, it was the most points scored since Ray Robinson piled up 42 against Thiel on Feb. 22, 2003. Popeck connected on 15-of-25 field goal attempts, including six-of-nine from three-point range over 37 minutes of action. He also tied for the game lead in steals, with two, and added three rebounds.
 
"Matt continues to improve and get stronger by the day," said Waynesburg head coach Tim Fusina. "When we started playing games this year, you could tell he was trying to work his way back. He has made tremendous strides and had a tremendous night."
 
Popeck missed all but the first two games of the 2019-20 season with a serious leg injury.
 
The loss locks Waynesburg in as the seven-seed in the upcoming PAC tournament. Given the structure for this year's tournament, the Yellow Jackets are expected to host 10th-seeded Saint Vincent in the opening round on Saturday, March 13. Tip-off has yet to be determined, but all details are set to be finalized in the very near future.
 
Grove City (6-3) got off to a quick start, beginning the game on a 15-5 run over the first five minutes. From that point-on, Waynesburg (3-6) kept pace with the Wolverines over the remainder of the half, and the score eventually settled in at 37-25 in favor of Grove City by halftime.
 
With 17:10 to go in the second half, the Yellow Jackets cut down the lead to seven following a Popeck layup to put the score at 40-33. The Wolverines built back up to a 12-point advantage just a few minutes later (49-37), but Waynesburg answered with a 12-2 run, with nine of those points coming from Popeck, to bring the game to one possession at 51-49 with 11:36 remaining on the clock.
 
Unfortunately, Grove City not only stopped the Jacket surge, but fired back with a 9-0 run to regain control of the contest. To the Yellow Jackets' credit, the home team didn't give up the fight and eventually brought the deficit down to just seven points (67-60) with 3:29 left in the half. Grove City managed to keep their distance from Waynesburg, though, and hit a few late baskets and free throws to bring the game to its final.
 
Junior forward Isaiah Alonzo (Chandler, Ariz. / Tri-City Christian Academy) paced the team in rebounds, with six, and added 14 points as the only other Yellow Jacket to score in double digits. Freshman guard Will Helton (Hollidaysburg, Pa. / Bishop Guilfoyle) dished out a game-high four assists, while freshman guard Bryson Wilt (Oakland, Md. / Southern Garrett) led the game with two blocks.
 
As a team, Waynesburg shot 47.3 percent from the field (26-of-55), including 55.6 percent in the second half (15-27), but Grove City was just a little more efficient, finishing the game with a 50.9 percentage from the field (29-of-57), including 61.5 percent in the second half (16-of-26). Both teams scored 40 points in the second half.
 
During the regular season, the Yellow Jackets finished as the second-best scoring defense in the conference, allowing just 68.3 points per game. Waynesburg also had the second-best free-throw percentage on the year (.752) and finished third in three-point field goal percentage defense (.327).