CLARION, Pa. --- The Golden Eagle men's basketball team played their final home game of the 2023-24 season on Wednesday evening, falling in a defensive battle to Mercyhurst by a 54-50 score. Clarion was within two possessions late with under a minute to play but could not totally catch up to the Lakers as time wound down.
 
The first half featured tight defense from both sides as neither team was able to get much going on offense. Clarion held the Lakers to a 10-of-27 (.370) mark from the field while shooting just 11-of-30 (.367) themselves, and the Golden Eagles built up a 20-17 advantage on the boards.
 
The Golden Eagles got off to a quick start in the first half, with Connor Spratt making a three-pointer at the 11:49 mark to put Clarion ahead 15-8. The freshman guard added another trey at the 9:52 mark to break a tie and make it 18-15, and Jayson Harris put Clarion ahead 24-21 with under four minutes to go in the half. Mercyhurst went off for a 7-2 run down the stretch to take the lead at the break.
 
The Lakers' run extended into the second half, as Mercyhurst got out to a 36-28 lead after a three-pointer by Jeff Planutis. Gavin Cote pushed back with a three-pointer off the fast break at the 15:13 mark, and Jeremy Thomas II converted an and-one less than two minutes later to pull within 36-34.  
 
It stayed a dogfight the rest of the way. With 5:01 left to go in regulation, Jayson Harris worked his way to the hoop for a layup, cutting the deficit to 47-45, but the Lakers responded with a jumper by Alexander Parks to once again extend the lead to two possessions. Parks added a three-pointer from the left wing to make it 52-45 but Justice Easter responded just nine seconds later, drilling his own trey from the left wing.
 
Both defenses clamped down for a stretch, with neither side scoring another bucket for more than two minutes of game action. Steve Kelly nearly pulled his team within a possession at the 1:08 mark when he picked Sean Fullerton's pocket and took the ball the length of the court, but Clarion could not quite finish on the offensive end. The Lakers got another key stop with 10 seconds left to play, and tacked on free throws down the stretch to lock up the win.   
 
Thomas finished the game with a double-double, tying for the team-high with 11 points and the game-high with 11 rebounds. Cote also logged 11 points, going 3-of-7 from three-point range, and Harris posted 10 points.