CLARION, Pa. --- The Golden Eagle men's basketball team pulled to within a handful of points early in the second half, but they were not able to overcome the deficit in falling 66-53 to Pitt-Johnstown at Tippin Gym on Wednesday night.
 
Clarion first started pulling tighter with roughly four minutes remaining in the first half, starting with a pair of free throw makes from Gerald Jarmon to cut the lead to 28-14. The Golden Eagles blocked shots on three consecutive Mountain Cat possessions to keep them off the scoreboard, and Mekhi Reynolds knocked down a deep three at the 2:17 mark to make it 28-17. Jarmon followed up with a midrange jumper with 58 seconds remaining to cap Clarion's 7-0 run, and Reynolds made it a 10-2 heater with another trey from well beyond the arc. That represented the final points of the first half as Clarion went into the halftime break trailing by eight points.
 
Jarmon got Clarion as close as seven points early in the second, making a three-pointer off a kickout pass from Steve Kelly at the 18:12 marker. Joe Batt matched Jarmon with a three-pointer on the next Mountain Cat possession to make it a double-digit lead, though, and this time UPJ was able to make that deficit stand. Jayson Harris sank a pair of free throws with 5:28 remaining to pull within 57-46 but the Mountain Cats clamped down for the win.
 
Jarmon finished with a game-high 19 points and was fairly efficient in getting there, shooting 7-of-14 from the field. He also pulled down six rebounds, which tied him with Cam Kearney for the team-high. Reynolds came off the bench for 11 points on 4-of-10 shooting, including a 3-of-4 night from three-point range. Kelly added a diverse stat line of four points, four assists, three steals, two rebounds and two blocked shots.
 
Pitt-Johnstown started the game on an 8-2 run, but Kearney was able to stop the bleeding at the 15:56 mark with a layup off a pass from Madior Seye. Kelly made it 10-6 with a pull-up jumper, and it was still just a two-possession game at the 12:46 mark of the first half, after Kearney sank a free throw. The Mountain Cats embarked on a 9-0 run to pad their lead, making it 21-7.
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