SCRANTON, Pa.—Despite a 25-point effort by junior forward Brian O’Donnell (Mahopac, N.Y./John F. Kennedy), including the 1000th of his career, and a 16-point, career-high 16 rebound performance by sophomore forward Bill Burke (West Pittston, Pa./Seton Catholic), the University of Scranton lost its second straight game, a 76-69 decision to DeSales University in Freedom Conference action Saturday afternoon at the John J. Long, S.J., Center.
Junior guard Michael Venafra (Belmont Hills, Pa./Lower Merion) scored 13 of his career-high 27 points in the second half as the Bulldogs won their fifth straight game to improve to 19-3 overall and 9-2 in the Freedom Conference. Senior forward Jim Zinn (Hanover, Pa./Delone Catholic) and senior forward Harry Morra (Phillipsburg, N.J./Phillipsburg) combined for 25 points for DeSales, which shot 51.7 percent from the field in the second half to protect a 33-30 halftime lead. Freshman guard Mike McGowan (Lansdale, Pa./Lansdale Catholic) came off the bench to contribute 10 points, two assists and two steals in 24 minutes of action for Scranton, which fell to 4-19 overall and 2-10 in league play.
DeSales jumped out to an early 9-0 lead before O’Donnell settled the Royals down and sparked a 21-8 rally by scoring eight points as Scranton led 21-17 with less than eight minutes remaining before intermission. Venafra then hit back-to-back 3-pointers and scored 11 of his 14 first-half points in the final 6:32 as the Bulldogs answered with a 16-9 spurt to take a 3-point lead at halftime.
The Royals opened the second half with a 15-8 run to take a 45-41 lead with 13:38 remaining. Morra keyed a 15-3 run with a layup and a 3-pointer off a steal as the Bulldogs took a 9-point lead, 57-48, with 9:16 left. Scranton managed to cut the margin to three with five minutes left and to four, 73-69, with 17 seconds remaining, but Venafra knocked down five throws in the final minute of play, including a pair with 8 seconds left, to ice the game.
O’Donnell became the 34th player in Scranton history to score 1000 points when he connected on a free throw at the 4:45 mark of the first half. He now has 1014 career points. Prior to the start of the game, O’Donnell was presented the 50th annual John “Les” Dickman Award, which is presented to the most valuable player at Scranton. Burke’s 16-rebound effort eclipsed his previous high of 13 on two different occasions.
The Royals will take on King’s College at the Scandlon Gymnasium in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, this Tuesday, February 17, before ending its season next Saturday at Delaware Valley College in Doylestown, Pennsylvania.
Newspaper Box Score DeSales University vs. The University of Scranton 2-14-04 3:00 at University of Scranton At University of Scranton DESALES UNIVERSITY 76, UNIVERSITY OF SCRANTON 69 DESALES UNIVERSITY (19-3/9-2 Freedom) Michael Venafra 9-19 5-6 27; Jim Zinn 5-12 0-0 13; Harry Morra 5-8 0-0 12; David Spadt 3-4 1-2 7; Drew Christman 2-6 2-3 6; Kyle Koch 2-6 0-0 5; Kevin Welsh 1-1 0-0 2; Jeff Clifford 1-5 0-1 2; David Bright 1-4 0-2 2. Totals 29-65 8-14 76. THE UNIVERSITY OF SCRANTON (4-19/2-10Freedom) Brian O'Donnell 8-13 7-9 25; Bill Burke 7-12 2-4 16; Mike McGowan 4-8 1-1 10; Matthew Snyder 3-8 1-1 8; Justin Freid 3-4 0-0 6; Sean Clark 2-9 0-0 4; Nick Alfier 0-3 0-0 0; Patrick Clabby 0-5 0-0 0; Michael Riccobono 0-2 0-0 0. Totals 27-64 11-15 69. DeSales University............ 33 43 - 76 University of Scranton........ 30 39 - 69 3-point goals-DeSales University 10-26 (Michael Venafra 4-8; Jim Zinn 3-8; Harry Morra 2-3; Kyle Koch 1-3; Jeff Clifford 0-1; Drew Christman 0-2; David Spadt 0-1), University of Scranton 4-23 (Brian O'Donnell 2-4; Mike McGowan 1-4; Matthew Snyder 1-3; Sean Clark 0-6; Nick Alfier 0-2; Patrick Clabby 0-2; Michael Riccobono 0-1; Bill Burke 0-1). Fouled out—DeSales University-None, University of Scranton-Brian O'Donnell. Rebounds-DeSales University 37 (David Bright 7; David Spadt 7), University of Scranton 42 (Bill Burke 16). Assists-DeSales University 18 (Kevin Welsh 4; Michael Venafra 4), University of Scranton 18 (Michael Riccobono 6). Total fouls-DeSales University 14, University of Scranton 15. A-550