MEDIA, PA – Cairn Men's Basketball opened their season on the road at Penn St. Brandywine, battling to a 93-92 win in double overtime to get off to a 1-0 start to the new season.
The Nittany Lions had the first five points of the season on a jumper in the paint and set of three free throws fouled shooting behind the arc. Graduate guard
Corey Baldwin (Henderson, NC / Averett) nailed a three to begin what would be a career night for him in a Highlander uniform. Penn St. Brandywine (0-1 / UNITED EAST) extended their lead to eight before Baldwin dropped another three with graduate guard
Chris Hill (Charlotte, NC / St. Augustine's University) and sophomore guard
Andrew DaCosta (Bordentown, NJ / Bordentown Regional) chipping in to tie the game at 14-14. Graduate guard
Jaylon Simpson (Atlanta, GA / Belmont Abbey) gave Cairn (1-0 / UNITED EAST) their first lead of the game with a layup as classmate
Ron Ayers (Prince George's Co., MD / Stevenson University) got on the board with a three.
Brandywine tied the game with five and change to play in the half, converting on a layup to stay in control as Baldwin responded with yet another deep shot. Hill made the back end of his trip to the free throw line and a jump shot close to the rim, giving the Highlanders a narrow 30-29 lead with two minutes to play while Baldwin added a layup. Brandywine ended the half with two baskets to take a 35-32 lead to the break.
Out of the gate, the Nittany Lions roared to an eleven-point lead, holding Cairn to just a three by Hill for the first four minutes of play. Simpson got to work, ending the run with a pair of free throws before stealing the ball for a breakaway layup and two more free throws to narrow the margin to five. Ayers grabbed a key defensive board and worked his way open down the other end for a three while Baldwin delivered from deep to take the lead back, 47-46. With a mid-range from Ayers, both squads had a lull in the action, going scoreless for two minutes, going a combined 0-8 in that span. Brandywine broke the stalemate with a bucket and pushed ahead by five.
Baldwin proved he was hot from three-point range with another three as Simpson tied the game at 55-all on a pair of free throws. DaCosta grabbed the lead back with a bucket as Simpson made another mid-range followed by a three on the next possession to get the lead up to four. Hill got fouled on a mid-range, making the basket and converting the three-point-play as Cairn maintained a narrow lead headed down to the wire. A dunk by Simpson kept the Highlanders in control as Baldwin put them up three with a layup, thirty seconds to play. Cairn would foul twice with the lead, putting Brandywine on the free throw line, in which they would convert the tie the game 71-71. Neither team would get off a final shot as this one went to overtime.
The Nittany Lions had the first bucket of OT as Ayers and Simpson scored for Cairn, eyeing down a four-point deficit as the clock inched closer to zero. Hill would make a layup with just over a minute left and knock down the jump shot after grabbing an offensive board to tie the game at 79-79. The Highlander defense held on to force double overtime.
The Highlanders faced their largest deficit, post-regulation play, of six points with just over two minutes left. DaCosta would be the spark to get the uphill battle moving, scoring a jump shot after his offensive rebound while Simpson splashed a jump shot after Cairn forced a miss on the other end. Down two, Simpson would get fouled on the next trip down the floor, making both free throws to tie the game 88-88 with a minute to play. Brandywine erased the hard work with two pairs of free throws to push the lead back to four. It was none other than Baldwin who roared right back, dropping his sixth three-pointer of the night with twenty seconds to play, making it a one-possession game. Cairn would miss a driving layup on their final opportunity in the frontcourt, but Baldwin was there for the putback, giving the Highlanders a 93-92 lead. Brandywine got the ball back with twelve seconds to play, missing a jump shot and not getting a second-chance up in time to give Cairn a hard-fought opening night win.
Baldwin had the most he's scored in a Cairn uniform in 25 points, shooting 6-11 from behind the arc and making it a double-double with 17 boards. Simpson had 24 going 9-11 from the free throw line with seven boards, three assists, and three steals. Hill was next with 16 while Ayers rounded out the double-digit scorers with 15 in his Highlander debut.
Cairn will look to put on another star-studded performance on Monday night in their home opener against City College of New York at 7 p.m.
