LATROBE, Pa. (Feb. 7) -- In a game in which the two teams combined to take 92 free throws and were whistled for 58 fouls, Saint Vincent outlasted visiting Bethany, 102-96, in a Presidents' Athletic Conference battle in the Robert S. Carey Student Center. 
 
The Bearcats (19-3, 14-3 PAC) topped the century mark for the second time this season, and saw five players score in double figures. Jaden Gales recorded a 24-point, 11-rebound double-double to lead the Bearcats, while Mike Iuzzolino added 21 points, Dev Ostrowski 20, Osyon Jones 12 and Corey Harden 10. Harden was a second SVC player to record a double-double, grabbing 10 rebounds. 
 
Saint Vincent was a stellar 36-48 from the foul line, including 26-36 in the second half. Gales went 8-9 and Iuzzolino 7-8 from the stripe to pace SVC. 
 
It was all Saint Vincent out of the gates, the Bearcats quickly opened up to a 7-2 lead in the first two and a half minutes of the game, after two buckets from Jones and a three-pointer from Iuzzolino. Bethany cut into the lead at 7-5 after a three-pointer of their own, but Saint Vincent answered with a 13-5 run to open the lead up to ten at 20-10 with 14:38 to go in the half.
 
Saint Vincent continued with pressure on both ends of the court, eventually increasing their lead 16 after a Jaden Bailey layup put them up 33-16 halfway through the opening half. The Bearcats then went on a 7-3 spurt that increased their lead to 21, their largest of the game (40-19) with just under eight minutes to play.
 
Bethany closed the half out on a strong note, outscoring SVC 18-9 over the final seven minutes of the half, cutting the lead to 12 (49-37) at the halftime break.
 
Out of the half, the Bearcats lead hovered between 11-13 points over the first several minutes of the second half, with Saint Vincent still holding a 60-47 lead. Over the next few minutes, the Bearcats offense picked up once again, this time going on a quick 7-0 run with a layup from Ostrowski, followed by a Gales dunk and Iuzzolino three pointer put SVC up by 20 (67-47) with 12:45 to go.
 
The Bison answered with a big run of their own over the next few minutes as Bethany went on a 14-3 run to cut the lead to single digits (70-61) for the first time since early in the first half. Both teams traded back-and-forth over the next few minutes with the Bearcats still holding an eight point, 79-71 lead with 6:39 to go in the game.
 
In the next few minutes, the Bison and Bearcats both saw players start to foul out of the game as the foul count continued to climb. Bethany continued to claw into the SVC lead, converting on their foul shot opportunities, as Bethany cut the Saint Vincent lead to five at 89-84 with with 2:30 to go.
 
The Bearcats had another quick spurt in them, getting their lead back up to double digits at ten (96-86) after a pair of Iuzzolino free throws with 55 seconds left to play. With the Bearcats having Bethany on the ropes with under a minute to play, the Bison still wouldn't go away.
 
Bethany went on 7-3 run over the next 40 seconds to cut the lead to just three at 99-96 with 17 seconds left to play. Saint Vincent sealed the deal at the foul line, as Ostrowski put in three free throws to secure the 102-96 home win.
 
Cole Dailey was one of four Bison to score in double figures, notching a 36-point, 13 rebound double-double. Tony Fox added 18 points, while Will Brooks scored 17 and Troy Hixson added 11 points as well for Bethany.
 
Saint Vincent shot a strong 49.2% (31-63) from the field, while also going 4-13 (30.8%) from beyond the three-point line. The Bearcats also forced 16 Bison turnovers, scoring 25 points off of those turnovers, while also scoring 52 points in the paint.
 
Saint Vincent returns to action on Saturday, February 10, playing host to Washington and Jefferson on senior day in the Robert S. Carey Center. Senior day festivities will take place prior to the 6 p.m. scheduled tip-off for the Bearcats and Presidents.