WAYNESBURG, Pa. (Feb. 3) -- The Waynesburg University men's basketball team, behind Antone Baker's (Maple Heights, Ohio / Maple Heights) career-best 30-point effort, topped Allegheny College 73-64 in a Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) clash Saturday afternoon at the Rudy Marisa Fieldhouse.

The Yellow Jackets (11-10, 8-8) clung to a slim 48-47 lead at the 15:18 mark of the second half after the Gators (5-16, 3-13) connected on a 3-pointer. A pair of Jaylen Davis (Cleveland Heights, Ohio / Cleveland Heights) layups on back-to-back possessions grew the Jackets lead to 5 with 13:36 left to play and kick started an extended 17-4 run over the next 7:29. Ryan Felberg (Twinsburg, Ohio / Twinsburg) added a free throw on the ensuing Jackets possession and Allegheny connected on a pair of freebies on their next possession to cut the deficit to 53-49 with 12:46 on the clock.

Baker then took the game into own hands, going on a 10-2 run of his own over the next 4:27 with five layups to give the Jackets a 63-51 lead with 8:07 left in the game. The senior standout finished the day 15-of-22 from the field and added seven rebounds along with a game-high four blocks.

Jordan McLoyd (Johnson City, Tenn. / Science Hill) capped the Yellow Jackets'  extended spurt after he picked up a steal on the next possession and connected on a straightaway transition jumper just beyond the free-throw line to give the Orange and Black a 14-point edge and force an Allegheny timeout with 7:49 remaining.

McLoyd notched a solid all-around performance for the Jackets with 17 points, five rebounds, three assists, one block and one steal. He was 6-of-11 shooting, including 3-of-5 from 3-point range, and 2-of-2 at the line.

The Gators made a late push but the Jackets thwarted the visitors comeback efforts to seal the 73-64 win. 

Davis notched a game-best 14 rebounds and 12 points to collect his sixth double-double of the season. Only Baker has produced more double-double performances on the season for the team (7). Davis added a pair each of assists, blocks and steals in the win.

The first half was close throughout as the Jackets and Gators went back and forth. A Jansen Knotts steal at the 4:01 mark led to a Baker jump shot to give the home side a 33-28 edge. Baker's jumper was part of a 9-3 run that gave the Yellow Jackets a 38-31 lead with 1:34 left until the intermission. Allegheny closed the half with 5 straight points to trail 38-36 at the break.

Knotts posted a game-best five assists and a game-high-tying four steals in the victory. As a team, the Yellow Jackets had nine steals and eight blocked shots.

The Jackets went 15-of-28 from the field in each half to shoot 53.6% for the game. Waynesburg was 4-of-7 from beyond the arc in the first half, but only 0-of-1 in the second half. The Yellow Jackets trailed for only 29 seconds in the victory.

Waynesburg returns to action next Wednesday, February 7 for a home 7:30 p.m. PAC matchup with Grove City College.