Center Valley, PA (February 25, 2023) - The DeSales University men's basketball team dropped a 74-61 decision to Arcadia University in the MAC Freedom Championship game on Saturday evening in Billera Hall.

The Basics

• Final Score: Arcadia - 74, DeSales - 61
• Records: DeSales (21-6 Overall); Arcadia (15-11 Overall)
• The Bulldogs fall to 19-10 all-time vs. the Scarlet Knights.
• DeSales must now sit and wait at a possible Pool C bid to extend their season in the NCAA Tournament with the announcement set for 1:00 pm on Monday afternoon.

How it Happened

• Arcadia got off to a quick start in this one opening up a 12-2 lead over the first 5:11 before DeSales took control.
• The Bulldogs used a 22-7 run over the next eight minutes led by a combined 15 points from junior Christian Guldin and first-year Nate Ellis.
• The Scarlet Knights ran off 10 straight points near the end of the half before sophomore Caleb Gibbs scored late to give DeSales a 35-34 halftime lead.
• The start of the second-half was back-and-forth as the Bulldogs continued to lead by one point (46-45) at the 13:43 mark.
• AU scored eight straight points over the next 1:40 take a 53-46 lead and extended that lead to 12 points at the 5:24 mark.
• A three-point play from junior Elijah Eberly and a triple from Guldin got the Bulldogs within six with 3:55 to go but Arcadia responded with seven straight points to put the game out of reach.

Top Bulldog Performers

• Guldin led the Bulldogs with a team-high 16 points off the bench, hitting 4 3's.
• Ellis added 10 points as the only other double digit scorer.
• Junior Mason Barnes had six assists in the loss.

For the Foes

• Nas Johnson led the Scarlet Knights with 23 points.
• Jalen Watkins was named the Tournament's Most Valuable Player with 13 points and 12 rebounds.
• Joshua Okocha had 16 points and Justin Money finished with 16 points in the win.

Inside the Box Score

• Arcadia hit 10-for-20 from three-point land and the Bulldogs converted just 7-for-26 (26.9 percent).
• AU committed just six turnovers for the game.