GLENSIDE, Pa. – The Arcadia University men's basketball team nearly came all the way back from a 45-28 halftime deficit, but that effort fell just short as visiting DeSales University held on for a 79-77 non-conference win Wednesday night at Alumni Gymnasium.
 
Arcadia got out to a slow start shooting just 33.3% in the first half. Leading all scorers with 13 points, Evan Slone shot 6 of 9 from the field in the opening 20 minutes. A 16-2 run that began at the 7:55 mark for the Bulldogs played a vital role in the momentum as it helped DeSales to a 39-23 lead with 3:28 to go in the half. The Bulldogs shot 50% in the frame, including 8 of 12 from distance.
 
Arcadia showed its resiliency coming out of the break as it opened the second half on an 11-4 run over the first four and a half minutes. Josh Scott opened the Knights'' second half scoring by completing a three point play 24 seconds in. Back-to-back-to-back jumpers from Slone, Tom Feraco and Kyle Reilly pulled the Knights within seven at 55-48 just shy of the half way point.
 
After the teams exchanged the next five buckets, DeSales opened a lead of as many as 13 during an 8-4 run that covered just over two minutes. The Knights punched back with a 9-0 run sparked by a Brandon Thompson trey and ended with a Scott layup to put Arcadia behind just one point with three minutes to go. With back and forth action the rest of the way, Arcadia was never able to reclaim the lead as Aaron Burton converted a pair of free throws with four seconds left to secure the win.
 
Scott and Reilly powered a second half which saw the Knights shoot 56.3% from the floor with 11 and 10 points, respectively. The former was 3 of 4 from the field and 5 of 6 from the charity stripe, while the latter went 3 of 5 from the field and 2 of 2 from the line. Kuity Slanger scored 11 points in the period for DeSales, including key baskets down the stretch.
 
An effective 9 of 13 shooting performance from Slone helped him to a game-high 19 points, while Reilly (12), Scott (11), and Cohen (10) all reached double-figures. Cody Deal was the leading scorer for DeSales with 15 as Slanger added 14 and Ryan Callahan posted 10.
The Bulldogs improved to 9-4 with the victory, while the Knights fell to 10-3 and saw their winning streak snapped at five games. Arcadia returns to conference play on Saturday when it travels to Stevenson.