WAYNESBURG, Pa. (Dec. 6) – Prior to Wednesday's Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) matchup between Waynesburg and Geneva, both programs had forged well-earned reputations for having two of the top defenses in the league. Their most recent meeting did nothing to tarnish either of their reputations, as the Golden Tornadoes topped the Yellow Jackets 58-48.
 
Following Wednesday night's tilt, Geneva (8-1, 6-0) led the PAC in fewest points given up per game (63.3) and Waynesburg (4-4, 2-3) held down the number-three spot (69.0).
 
The Jackets opened up by scoring eight of the first 11 points of the night thanks to field goals from junior Jordan McLoyd (Johnson City, Tenn. / Science Hill), senior Jansen Knotts (Ridgeley, W.Va. / Frankfort) and senior Bryson Wilt (Oakland, Md. / Southern Garrett). Geneva rebounded to build a 14-12 edge after 6:45, before Waynesburg built its largest advantage of the contest at 20-14 with 8:14 remaining in the half.
 
Momentum swung back to the visitors, who moved ahead 28-25 with just under 30 seconds remaining in the opening half. It looked like the game would go into halftime tied following a McLoyd 3-pointer with just five seconds showing on the clock. However, the GT's got a big shot of momentum heading into the break with a buzzer-beater from long range that gave them a 31-28 halftime advantage.
 
The majority of the second half belonged to Geneva, which built a 53-37 lead with five minutes remaining in the contest. The Jackets pulled to within 10 points by scoring the final five points of the contest. However, true to the defense-first theme of the night, neither squad was able to add to their respective scoring totals over the closing 72 seconds of action.
 
Despite the low scoring totals, both teams did an admirable job of protecting the basketball, as Geneva committed just nine turnovers and Waynesburg coughed it up just six times.
 
Senior Antone Baker (Maple Heights, Ohio / Maple Heights) led Waynesburg with his fourth double-double of the season. The veteran post player tallied a team-high 14 points and a contest-best 11 rebounds.
 
McLoyd also reached double digits on the stat sheet with 11 points. Knotts paced his team with four assists.
 
Waynesburg is back in action on Saturday, Dec. 9, when it travels to Allegheny for another conference showdown. Tipoff against the Gators is scheduled for 4 p.m.