LATROBE, Pa. (Nov. 27) - The Saint Vincent men's basketball team was defeated 74-48 by visiting Waynesburg in the 2021-22 Presidents' Athletic Conference opener for each team.

The Bearcats (1-5, 0-1 PAC) struggled offensively, shooting just 32 percent from the field, while the Yellow Jackets (3-2, 1-0 PAC) connected on 9 three-pointers and out-rebounded SVC 49-36.

Osyon Jones paced the Bearcats with 9 points, while Dominic Jennings, Nelson Etuk and Ethan Dunsey each adding 8. Dunsey grabbed a season-high 13 rebounds, narrowly missing his first career double-double.

Tied at 2 in the opening 90 seconds, Waynesburg used a long 12-2 run over the next seven minutes to open up a 14-4 lead. A three-pointer from Jennings and a layup from Dunsey would cut the Waynesburg lead to 17-9 at the 10-minute mark, but the visitors would then score the next six points tu pu the lead to 23-9 with 5:45 left until the break. A bucket in the paint from Dunsey closed the gap to 23-14 with 3:47 to go, but the Yellow Jackets closed out the half on a 7-4 run to take a 30-18 lead into the locker room.

While the SVC defense limited Waynesburg to just 34 percent from the field in the opening half, the Yellow Jackets held the Bearcats to just a 29-percent mark (7-for-28), including 1-for-13 from behind the three-point line.

The teams traded baskets in the opening minute of the second half before Waynesburg put together another long run, out-scoring SVC 17-5 over the next seven minutes to open up a 50-25 lead with just over 12 minutes left in regulation. After the long Waynesburg surge, the teams essentially traded baskets over the final 11 minutes, but the Bearcats were unable to chip away at the deficit and were handed the home defeat.

Waynesburg's Matt Popeck led all scorers with 36 points, including 28 in the second half, while teammate Antone Baker hauled in a game-high 16 rebounds.

Saint Vincent will return to action on Wednesday, Dec. 1, when it continues its three-game home stand with a 7:30 p.m. bout against PAC rival Chatham University in the Robert S. Carey Student Center.