BRADFORD, Pa. – Penn State Altoona men's basketball snapped its two-game skid with an 86-55 victory over Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference opponent Pitt-Bradford on Saturday afternoon at the KOA Arena.

Penn State Altoona (8-4, 4-4 AMCC) had a strong day defensively, forcing Pitt-Bradford (1-12, 0-8 AMCC) into 26 turnovers while limiting the Panthers to a 31.7 percent field goal percentage.

"Feels great to get back in the win column today, especially on the road," said Penn State Altoona head coach David McGreal. "Every conference road game is important, and we are happy to get this one."

Jack Kusters (Quakertown, PA/Lansdale Catholic) led all scorers with a season-high 26 points while adding five rebounds and two assists. Kusters went 11-for-15 from the field, including 2-for-4 from three-point range. Andruw Harman (Chesapeake, VA/Great Bridge) tied his season-high point total with 20 points, and he grabbed a team-high eight rebounds. Harman also had a strong showing from the field, shooting 9-for-13.

Austin Krise (Allport, PA/West Branch) scored 13 points off the bench for the Lions on a 5-for-6 shooting performance that included going 3-for-4 from downtown. Krise also tallied a game-high three steals.

"Great performances all around by Jack, Druw, and Aus," said McGreal. "We have to keep getting better every day, and winning this one helps that momentum."

Trey Butterworth (Clarence, PA/Bald Eagle) and Bryan Acosta (Orlando, FL/Wekiva) tied for the game-high in assists with five apiece. As a team, Penn State Altoona totaled 22 assists, compared to Pitt-Bradford's 10.

Pitt-Bradford was led in scoring by Dylan Meyer, who contributed 15 points while securing 13 rebounds. Jeffrey Fry scored 10 points for the Panthers.

Penn State Altoona got out to an impressive start, holding Pitt-Bradford to just 17 first half points on a 6-for-29 shooting performance. Meanwhile, the Lions amassed 36 points in the game's opening period to stake out a 19-point advantage by halftime.

Layups from Harman and Cameron Gardner-Nicholson (Philadelphia, PA/Boys' Latin Charter), along with a three-pointer from Kusters, helped the Lions start off on a 7-0 run in the game's first two minutes. Three-pointers from Krise and Nate Gillen (Johnstown, PA/Central Cambria) helped extend their team's lead to 22-6 by the 11:40 mark, and back-to-back layups by Alex McClellan (York, PA/West York) later in the half made it 34-17 with 5:19 to play in the period.

Penn State Altoona's offense exceeded its first half effort during the second period, when the Lions put 50 points on the board while shooting 52.6 percent.

Two baskets from Kusters and another by Gardner-Nicholson helped Penn State Altoona to a 42-19 lead early in the second half. Krise's trey at 13:11 put the Lions up 59-26, and Harman's basket and free throw at 8:07 made it 66-39. Three-pointers on consecutive possessions by Trevor Hunter (Baltimore, MD/New Town) and Kusters put Penn State Altoona ahead 78-45 with 3:59 remaining, and Michael Schermerhorn's (Kingsley, PA/Mountain View) three-pointer with 34 seconds left gave the Lions their largest lead of the game, 86-52.

Penn State Altoona finished the game with statistical advantages over Pitt-Bradford in assists (22-10), points off turnovers (33-8), points in the paint (50-20), and fastbreak points (28-2).

"Now, we have to continue to progress as we get ready for Behrend next weekend," stated McGreal.

Penn State Altoona men's basketball returns to the Adler Arena for its next game, which is Saturday, January 18 at 2:00 p.m. against AMCC foe Penn State Behrend.