LEXINGTON, Va. – The Penn State Altoona men's basketball team played its first road game of the season on Sunday afternoon, losing 81-72 to non-conference opponent Washington and Lee University in the Holekamp Gymnasium.

Penn State Altoona (0-2) established a double-digit lead during the first half, but Washington and Lee (1-0) used a late run to go ahead by halftime. The Generals fended off the Lions during the second half while adding to their advantage.

"Not the result we wanted, but I was proud of our effort today in a tough place to play against a very quality team out of one of the best conferences [Old Dominion Athletic Conference] in the nation," said Penn State Altoona head coach David McGreal. "Getting a home and home split against them after we beat them at home last season is something we're proud of."

Saivon Word (Upper Marlboro, MD/Frederick Douglass) had team-highs for Penn State Altoona with 18 points, seven rebounds, and four assists. PJ Charles (Altoona, PA/Altoona) added 11 points, three rebounds, two assists, and two steals, while Robbie Hicks (Rockledge, FL/Rockledge) also scored 11 points and grabbed three boards

Dwayne Jones (Philadelphia, PA/Greater Johnstown) added nine points for the Lions, and Mason Bush (Pittsburgh, PA/Seneca Valley), Andruw Harman (Chesapeake, VA/Great Bridge), Alex McClellan (York, PA/West York), and James Simples III (Philadelphia, PA/Lower Merion) finished with five points apiece.

Jack d'Entremont scored 17 points and secured 13 rebounds to lead the way for Washington and Lee, while Jack Lewis scored 15 points. Sam Wise scored 14, Thomas Feigin had 12 off of the bench, and Robert DiSibio contributed 11 points.

After a tightly-played first six minutes of the game, Penn State Altoona pulled ahead by a strong margin. Charles' basket put the Lions on top 15-14, and back-to-back threes from McClellan and Bush gave the visitors a 10-point lead, 24-14, by the 11:22 mark. Bush's layup 14 seconds later made it 26-14. Washington and Lee narrowed the gap to 26-22 with 8:32 on the clock, but Word's three-pointer and McClellan's jumper got Penn State Altoona's lead back to seven, 31-24, by 5:55.

However, the Generals rallied for a late run to take a one-point lead into halftime, as Washington and Lee outscored Penn State Altoona 13-5 over the rest of the period to go into the break with a 37-36 advantage.

Harman started the second half scoring with a layup 14 seconds into the period to put the Lions back in front, 38-37, but Washington and Lee jumped back on top following a three-pointer from Lewis in the next possession. The Generals expanded their lead to 12 points, 57-45, on a Feigin three-pointer at 13:09, and he connected from three-point range again at 6:12 to keep the Washington and Lee advantage in double digits, 66-55. A basket and foul shot from d'Entremont gave the home team a 13-point lead, 73-60, at 4:02.

Penn State Altoona cut into the Generals' lead late. Word's three-pointer at 2:18 brought his team back to within seven, 75-68, and Hicks' jumper at 1:21 kept the difference at seven points, 77-70. But the Lions were unable to get any closer than seven the rest of the way, as Washington and Lee maintained a multi-possession lead.

Penn State Altoona was hurt by its performance at the free throw line, where the Lions shot just 33.3 percent (6-for-18) in a game decided by nine points.

"Basically, if we make our free throws, we're probably up six or seven going into halftime. But where it was turnovers on Tuesday that did us in, it was free throws today," said McGreal. "I think we got better today. Our defense, in spurts, was really good against a team that can shoot it. We have to continue to play with a team first mindset on the offensive end."

Next, the Penn State Altoona men's basketball team will prepare to take part in The College of New Jersey Tournament on Friday, November 18 and Saturday, November 19 in Ewing, N.J. The Lions will take on Neumann University at 7:00 p.m. in Friday's game, then will face either Pratt Institute or TCNJ on Saturday at 3:00 or 5:00 p.m.