YORK, PA – The York College men's basketball team showed no signs of Christmas break rust as the Spartans downed Penn State Harrisburg 76-56 in a non-conference contest on Monday afternoon in York.
The Spartans placed four players in double figures as they have won five of their last six games.
York improves to 6-3 overall while the Lions fall to 6-6.
 
How It Happened
• The game was tight early as the Spartans had an 8-7 lead after an Irby Hunter jumper just over three minutes into the game. The Spartans ripped off a 14-2 run that covered 7:05 of game time to give York a 22-9 lead. Kai Cipalla had six points on the run as the Spartans seized control of the game.
• Harrisburg scored the next five points of the game to slice the Spartan lead to eight. However, the Spartans responded with a 12-2 run to take a 34-16 lead with 4:31 left in the first half. York was 4-for-5 from three during the run as Jackson Mascari, Jayden Rowe, Chris Miers, and Cipalla each drilled a three during the run. York finished the half outscoring Harrisburg 9-8 as the Spartans took a 43-24 lead to the break.
• Harrisburg opened the second half with a quick 7-3 spurt, trimming their deficit to 15. The Green and White responded with an 11-2 run to push their led to 24 (57-33) with 13:05 left in regulation. The Lions would not get closer than 18 the remainder of the game.
 
By the Numbers
The Spartans shot 44% (22-for-50) from the field and 12-for-27 (44.4%) from three … the Spartans were a sharp 20-for-23 (87%) from the free throw line … York held the Lions to 37.1% (23-for-62) shooting from the floor including 4-for-17 (23.5%) from three …the Lions were just 6-for-9 (66.7%) from the stripe … the Lions held a 38-33 edge on the glass including a 10-2 margin in offensive rebounds … Harrisburg turned the ball over 14 times which led to 17 Spartan points while the Lions scored 12 points off York's nine miscues … Harrisburg had a 24-18 advantage in paint points … York had seven steals to just five for Harrisburg … York blocked seven shots in the win … Chris Henderson led the way for Harrisburg with 19 points, six rebounds, four steals and an assist in 34 minutes of play … Isaiah Eggleston was the other Lion in double figures with 16 points to go along with four rebounds … no other Lion had more than five points in the game.
 
Spartan Notes
York is now 21-4 all-time against the Penn State Harrisburg Lions as the Spartans have won five straight in the series … the meeting is the first since January 31, 2019 when York notched a 71-59 win at Wolf Gymnasium … the Spartans tied a season-high with 12 three-pointers … York is 23-for-59 (38.9%) from three in their last two games … the Spartans were outstanding from the line as they converted 20-for-23 for an 87% accuracy mark … York is 68-for-92 (73.9%) from the free throw line in their last four games … York continues to do a good job of taking care of the ball while also distributing the ball with 18 assists and nine turnovers in the win … York had seven blocked shots, their second-highest total of the year (9 vs. Hobart) … York has been out-rebounded in four straight games and seven times in their nine games … senior Kai Cipalla continues to play well for the Green and White as he led the way with 23 points, six rebounds, three steals, a blocked shot and an assist in 31 minutes of action … Cipalla was 9-for-15 from the floor, 1-for-2 from three and 4-for-4 from the line … Chris Miers added 13 points on an efficient 4-for-6 from the floor including 3-for-5 from three and 2-for-2 from the stripe … Miers also had three rebounds and four assists to go along with a steal … Jackson Mascari and Jayden Rowe each added 12 points to the Spartan attack … Mascari also had a team-leading eight rebounds, four assists and a steal … Rowe had three rebounds, three assists and a blocked shot as he was an efficient 4-for-6 from the floor, 3-for-4 from three and 1-for-2 from the stripe … three Spartans made their collegiate debuts as Drew Pape, Carter Horst, and Simon Dlugi all saw action for York.
 
Up Next
The Spartans head to Hoboken, New Jersey on Friday night for the Stevens Men's Basketball Holiday Tournament. The Spartans face Oswego State at 7:30 pm following the tournament's opening game of Stevens against Hamilton at 5:30. The consolation game is set for Saturday at 1:00 pm followed by the championship game at 3:00 pm.
The tournament features four teams with a combined record of 28-7 (80.0%). Hamilton enters the tournament at 9-1 followed by Stevens at 7-2, Oswego at 6-1 and York at 6-3.

Audio Highlights courtesy of Darrell Henry, the Voice of the Spartans