Box Score
HAMBURG, N.Y. - The Hilbert men's basketball team honored their lone senior CJ Hodge prior to their battle with Pitt-Greensburg this afternoon. A game that saw 13 lead changes did not go in the Hawks favor due to unprecedented turnovers late in the game. The 67-62 loss puts Hilbert in a tie for first place with Penn State-Behrend.
 
The Bobcats were led by Marcus Thomas' 10 points, 11 rebounds, three assists, and two blocks. Rocco Contristano and Mike Connelly also hit double-digit scoring with 13 and 10, respectively. Jerell Figueroa dished out six assists and had nine points.
 
Hilbert's Jerame Owens finished with 13 points on five of eight shooting, while grabbing six rebounds. Sean Weisansal contributed 11 points and Trevor Stark added another ten. CJ Hodge had a team-high five assists and three steals to add to his career totals.
 
Starks started things off for the Hawks with a steal and layup and followed that by forcing another Bobcat turnover which led to a three-pointer for Jordan Kumro. Starks then drained a three of his own to give the Hawks an 8-0 lead at 17:57. The Bobcats retaliated with a 17-2 run of their own to hold a 17-10 advantage. The fight continued back and forth for the remainder of the half and a layup by Hodge gave the Hawks a 30-29 lead with 55 ticks to go. However, the Bobcats turned a turnover by Hilbert with 7 seconds left into an uncontested layup as time expired. The teams went into the break with Greensburg controlling a 31-30 advantage.
 
Pitt-Greensburg came out of the break with a 9-3 run over the lethargic Hawks. Hilbert turned things around with three straight scores by Weisansal - consisting of a layup, a three ball, and an old-fashion three-point play. Hilbert continued to attack the Bobcats defense, as Xaiver Major also finished a three-point play and headed back to the free-throw line on the following offensive possession.
 
With 10:41 remaining in the half, Greensburg 's Mike Pearson hit two free throws to knot the game up at 49. The Bobcats would then take the lead off a Hawks turnover but the Hilbert continued to attack the rim to keep the game within reach. Hilbert made their defensive presence known by taking two charges in less than two minutes to regain the momentum.
           
The Hawks hit three free throws over two possessions to regain the lead at 56-55 with 6 minutes left in regulation. Greensburg swung back with four straight points to go up three. Starks finished a tough layup and Major took another charge which kept the Hawks within one.
 
Pearson went back to the line at 1:24  and hit one of two free throws making it a 60-58  game for Greensburg. The Hawks turned the ball over on their next three possessions and allowed the Bobcats to go up eight with under twenty seconds to go. The Hawks were unable to overcome the deficit and fell 67-62.
 
The Hawks shot 37.1% for the game, whereas the Bobcats shot 46.6% from the floor and 85.7% from the stripe (9-11 in the second half). The Hawks had three more offensive rebounds than Greensburg but lost the overall battle 39-35.
 
The Hawks (19-4, 13-3) get to go on the road and break the first place tie with Penn State- Behrend on Wednesday at 6pm.