GREENSBURG, Pa: After trailing at the half 46-45, the Pitt-Greensburg men's basketball team erupted for 63 second half points to power their way to a 108-97 victory over visiting Franciscan. 

Due to excessive water damage in Chambers Hall, the Bobcats home contest was moved down the street to neighboring Seton Hill University. 

The Bobcats jumped out to an early 7 point advantage at 13-6 just 5 minutes into the game, only to see the Barons come storming back, outscoring UPG 34-15 over the next 10 minutes to take a commanding 12-point lead at 40-28.  Pitt-Greensburg responded by closing the half on a 17-6 run of their own to trail by just a single point at halftime.

In the second half, the two teams went back and forth trading buckets with neither team creating any separation.  UPG senior Marcus Thomas hit a layup with 7:29 remaining in the game to put the Bobcats ahead at 74-73.  Pitt-Greensburg would not relinquish that lead again, using a 20-9 run to build a double digit lead with just 2 minutes to go.  UPG shot 60% from the floor in the second half (21 for 35) and finished the night 13 of 31 from three point range.

Leading the way for the Bobcats was senior Mike Connelly who had a team high 24 points on 8 of 14 shooting.  Jerell Figueroa converted 7 of 12 attempts including 5 three point baskets to finish the night with 19 points along with 8 assists. Rocco Contristano was a perfect 10 for 10 from the free throw line Wednesday night, finishing with 16 points, playing in just 19 minutes because of foul trouble.

Thomas was a rebound shy of another double-double, with a line of 13 points, 9 rebounds.  The Bobcats also got solid contributions from sophomore Joe Mancini who knocked down three, three-point baskets to finish the night with 11 points while freshman Kyle Bondi added 10 points in extended action tonight.  Not to be overlooked is sophomore guard Matt Darby, who played solid defense down the stretch for the Bobcats, while also finishing the night with 6 points, 5 assists, 4 rebounds, and a pair of steals.

Pitt-Greensburg eclipses the century mark (100 pts) for the second time this season as they improve to 13-7 overall and more importantly 10-3 in the AMCC.  Franciscan falls to an AMCC worst 1-12 in league play and sit at 1-18 overall.

UPG will try to keep pace towards the top of the AMCC as they currently sit in 3^rd place just a half game shy of Hilbert (11-3) and two games back of league leader Penn State Behrend (12-1) with 5 games remaining.

The Bobcats will welcome Medaille College to town this Saturday for an all-important AMCC contest. Time and location for Saturday's tip are still TBA.

GAME NOTES:
-With his 24 points tonight, senior Mike Connelly sits at 989 for his career, just 11 shy of becoming the third member of this senior class to eclipse the 1,000 point mark.  Expect Connelly to enter the record books in Saturday's contest.

-The Bobcats have locked up a playoff berth in the AMCC for the third consecutive season. With a win on Saturday against Medaille, the Bobcats will have 14 victories on the season, matching their win total from the 2014-15 season.  The Bobcats would also clinch a second consecutive winning season under sixth year Head Coach Sean Strickland.