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Hot start fuels YSU’s 73-64 win over Detroit Mercy

Correspondent photo / Robert Hayes. YSU's Gabe Dynes dunks the ball during the first half in the Penguins' 73-64 home victory over Detroit Mercy on Sunday at the Beeghly Center.

YOUNGSTOWN — It wasn’t pretty, but it didn’t need to be.

The fouls and turnovers piled up and Youngstown State went through hot and cold stretches throughout the game, but a fast start in both the first and second halves gave the Penguins the cushion they needed. YSU held off Detroit Mercy 73-64 on Sunday afternoon to remain unbeaten in Horizon League play and improve to 4-0 in conference for the first time in school history.

“I thought the start of the first half and start of the second half was critical,” head coach Ethan Faulkner said. “I thought we were really locked in. Started the game very aggressive defensively, very disruptive — obviously forced several turnovers early which allowed us to get out in transition to get some easy baskets. Then in the second half, after getting a little lackadaisical at the end of the first half, really came out and jumped on them in the first four minutes. I thought those two stretches of the game were critical.”

The win was YSU’s seventh straight after opening the season 2-5. The seven-game streak matches the program’s longest winning streak in its Division I era.

The record was originally set during the 1997-98 season and was matched last year when the Penguins won seven straight during the first half of the season.

“We feel really good, I’ll tell you that,” senior guard EJ Farmer said. “But we just gotta keep it going, one game at a time.”

In the opening minutes, YSU went on a 10-0 run to start things off. Farmer scored eight of those points, while hitting a pair of threes, as the Penguins took advantage of four early Titans turnovers.

It took Detroit Mercy about three-and-a-half minutes to score its first point, as YSU raced ahead to a 23-3 advantage after junior guard Jason Nelson hit a 3-pointer in transition.

“Going into the game, our last couple games, our first four minutes haven’t gone that well,” Farmer said. “So we emphasized that a lot today, those first four minutes to start a game, that’s going to really get us going. And I feel like we responded pretty well with that.”

After the sizzling start, YSU cooled off considerably. The Penguins were 1-for-15 from the floor for one stretch of the latter stage of the first half, but they still took a 15-point lead into halftime.

“Obviously we didn’t play our best game out there,” sophomore center Gabe Dynes said. “We weren’t too connected. But obviously that start gave us a boost and lead to work with.”

In the first couple minutes of the second half, YSU jumped out with a 9-3 run to build its largest lead of the game (23 points).

But while the result was never truly in doubt, Detroit Mercy refused to go away.

The Titans just kept chipping and chipping away into the second half, as YSU went through cold stretches offensively.

Immediately after the Penguins pushed their lead to 23, the Titans responded with a 13-1 run over the next four minutes to cut the deficit to 11.

Like it has through the first half of the season, YSU had to lean on its defense to keep Detroit Mercy at arm’s length. For the game, the Titans finished shooting 31.3% from the floor overall and made just two of their 16 three-point attempts.

“I think it really fueled us from the tip,” Faulkner said of the defense. “We were really locked in, really executing what we were trying to do defensively and just very disruptive. Really took them out of their flow offensively. This is a team that has the capabilities to be very good defensively. As we continue to get better, rebounding the ball and defending without fouling — sometimes our aggressiveness gets us in trouble with putting them at the free-throw line — so I think if we can continue to get better in those two areas defensively, we got a chance to be elite.”

With 8:14 to go, Detroit Mercy had YSU’s lead down to 10, but fifth-year Siem Uijtendaal knocked down threes on back-to-back possessions to give the Penguins some breathing room once again.

When Uijtendaal let the second one go, fellow fifth-year Ty Harper, who provided the assist, turned and took off down the floor with three fingers in the air, knowing the shot would fall.

“Siem makes the two biggest shots of the game tonight,” Faulkner said. “A guy that has been struggling a little bit, but we knew it was coming with him. He’s too good of an offensive player.”

Farmer led YSU with 16 points, while Gabe Dynes scored 12 and Nico Galette added 10. Orlando Lovejoy powered the Titans with 23 points as their only scorer in double figures.

The Penguins will head out on their Indiana road trip as they look to stay unbeaten in conference play at IU Indy on Wednesday and Purdue Fort Wayne on Saturday.

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