HIRAM, Ohio – November 9, 2024 – A fast-paced, back-and-forth affair ended in heartbreak fashion for the Hiram men's basketball team on Saturday evening, as the Terriers held a three-point lead in the final minute of overtime before Pitt-Bradford scored the final four points of the game in what shaped out to be a 110-109 loss inside Price Gymnasium.
Hiram shot 67.9% from the field in the first half (19-28) and erased a deficit as large as eight points in the second half. Pitt-Bradford would make a layup with five seconds remaining in the second half to send the game to overtime, which marked the first overtime contest for the program since Jan. 21, 2022 against Wittenberg (85-78 loss).
The Terriers scored the first four points of the overtime period and later got a go-ahead layup from
Trent Jakacki and two free throws from
Ivan Yang, but the Pitt-Bradford offense made a pair of fast-break layups and the defense added two steals in the closing stretch to finish off the early-season thriller.
Hiram had three student-athletes finish with at least 20 points: Jakacki (25),
Ivan Yang (21) and
Collin Jones (20). Yang also recorded his third career game with at least 20 rebounds and
Manuel Devora Violan had a team-high six assists.
The Terriers roared out to a lead as large as 23 points in the first half, with the sharpshooting of
Brock Makrancy accounting for nine points and the veteran contributions of Jakacki and Yang playing a key early role. Pitt-Bradford would end the half on a 12-1 run, which included a long-distance three-pointer at the buzzer.
The second half saw the offenses come back down to Earth, but the frenetic pace of the game stayed true to form. Neither team led by double-digits in the second half, with Jakacki making two free throws to give Hiram a 101-99 lead with 14 seconds left and Keshon Kittrell making a layup to even the score and send it to overtime.
The Panthers did just enough in the end to hold on for the win, but an exciting start to the season and a nail-biter of a finish made for a memorable start to the season for the Terriers.
Hiram will look to get in the win column on Wednesday, when it travels to Beaver Falls, PA for a road matchup with Geneva at 7:30 p.m. inside Metheny Fieldhouse.
