Lucas scores 33, sparks Vulcans to NCAA win
California’s Bryson Lucas has earned a rich reputation as a standout college basketball player with his play on the defensive end of the court.
The 6-7 redshirt junior forward from Clarksburg, W.Va., has twice been named the Defensive Player of the PSAC West and his performance this year helped Cal to the conference championship and berth in the NCAA Division II tournament.
Lucas, however, can also stand out on the offensive end. He proved as much Saturday night in the first round of the Atlantic Regional.
Lucas pumped in a game-high 33 points to go with 16 rebounds and five assists as California defeated Fayetteville State 96-83 Saturday night at Gannon’s AHN Events Center.
“It was really just the flow of the game,” Lucas explained. “When I’m open, I’m going to take the shots. It was falling for me today.”
The win advances the Vulcans (23-8) into the regional semifinal Sunday night against top-seeded Gannon (29-3), an 83-58 winner over Charleston (W/Va.). Tipoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.
Cal led for almost the entire first half but Fayetteville State (23-7) scored eight of the final 12 points to take a 45-44 lead into the intermission.
The Vulcans turned to Lucas on the offensive end in the second half and he responded by making eight of 10 shots and scoring 19 points as Cal shot 54 percent after halftime. The Vulcans scored 56 points from inside the lane in the game.
Fayetteville State scored the first basket of the second half, but Cal went on a 15-2 run to open a double-digit lead at 59-49. Lucas scored five points during the run.
Moments later, Cal took firm control when the Vulcans embarked on a 13-2 spurt – seven of the points scored by Lucas – to make the score 77-56 and Fayetteville State never recovered. The Broncos could get no closer than 12 points the rest of the way.
“We really played well,” said Cal head coach Danny Sancomb, “especially in the first 12 minutes of the second half. We were really locked in defensively. … We got some steals that led to easy baskets.”
Jordyn Buchanan scored 14 of his 23 points in the second half and Antoine Arnett finished with 10 for the Vulcans, who won despite making only 16 of 34 free throws. Buchanan made six of nine shots from three-point range.
“Bryson had a helluva game with 33 points, and Jordyn shooting six of nine from three. Those two guys were really locked in,” Sancomb said. “But their teammates helped. We had 29 assists, which is the most I’ve ever been a part of.”
Ezekiel Cannedy came off the bench to score a team-high 20 points for Fayetteville State. Larry Howell had 15 points and Terrell Williams scored 13.
The loss snapped a winning streak of 17 games by the Broncos (23-7).
Cal and Gannon will be playing for the fourth time this season and the second in eight days. The Vulcans and Golden Knights split two regular-season games with each team winning on its home court. Cal defeated Gannon in Erie last Sunday in the PSAC tournament championship game.
In the other games in the regional, seventh-seeded Virginia Union upset No. 2 West Liberty 52-46 and No. 6 IUP edged No. 3 Fairmont State, 89-83.