Feb. 14 – BETHANY, W. Va. - The Bethany College men's basketball team (14-9, 9-5 PAC) saw their Presidents' Athletic Conference winning streak stop at eight games as they fell to Waynesburg University, 78-53, on Saturday afternoon.
The Yellow Jackets stormed out to a 15-point lead in the first nine minutes, opening a 19-4 advantage with 11:04 to play. Senior Jeff Joynes (Baltimore, Md./Poly) then responded, helping the Bison trim the lead to single digits. He went on a personal 8-2 run, including two three-point baskets to cut the Waynesburg lead to 21-12 with 9:17 to play. That, however, would be as close as the Bison would get in the first half. The Yellow Jackets outscored Bethany by eight over the remaining nine minutes of the half, and the Green & White found themselves down by 17 at the break.
Joynes led the way for Bethany in the opening stanza, scoring 10 of the team's 23 points on four-of-eight shooting off the bench.
The second half was more of the same for the Bison, who shot just 29 percent in the second stanza, the Green & White would get not closer than 15 points in the closing half, eventually succumbing to the 25-point difference.
Offensively, Delonte' Joyce (Annapolis, Md./Annapolis) led the way for Bethany, scoring 11 of his team-high 15 points in the second half. Joynes finished the day with 10, while Antonio Rudolph (New Castle, Pa./New Castle) and Andrew Williams (Oil City, Pa./Oil City) scored five points, each.
Despite the loss, the Bison have had a solid month, winning eight of their last ten contests in order to move into fourth-place in the PAC standings. The Bison still hold a one-game lead over Thiel College for the fourth spot, and if the records continue to hold, the Bison would host a first-round playoff game against the league's fifth-seed, which would be either Thiel or Geneva.
The Green & White will close out the home portion of their schedule on Wednesday, February 18, when they host Grove City College for senior day. The game is scheduled to follow the women's contest which begins at 6 p.m.
