Philadelphia, Pa. –  In the Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference (CACC) opener for both squads, the Georgian Court University men's basketball team was outlasted by host-Philadelphia University 88-64 Wednesday night in the Gallagher Center.  

The Rams (2-1, 1-0 CACC) took control of a tight contest with an 11-1 surge to turn a two-point deficit into a 26-18 lead with 5:11 left in the first half. Sophomore forward TJ Huggins (Alexandra, Va./T.C. Williams) scored four of his six points during the run.

Leading by 10 late in the half, Nick Schlitzer (Jr.-Pottsville, Pa.) drilled a pair of threes in the final 45 to push the Philadelphia advantage to a half-high 16 points (42-26) at the break.

The Lions (0-3, 0-1 CACC) got as close as 10 points when Keith Hughes hit a jumper with 18:34 left to make the score 42-32.

Philadelphia ended any threat of a Georgian Court rally with a 21-6 run to push the gap to 63-38.

Jordan Wejnert paced the Lions with a game-high 23 points on 10-of-16 shooting. Jalen Robinson added 16 points while Hughes contributed 14 points in a team-high 37 minutes.

Schlitzer netted a team-high 22 points and also added eight rebounds and four assists in 34 minutes of action. He shot 8-of-15 from the field, including 6-of-12 from 3-point range.

Derek Johnson (Conshohocken, Pa./Atlantic Christian) notched his first double-double of the season as he went for 19 points and a team-best 11 boards.  Peter Alexis (Wilkes Barre, Pa./Holy Redeemer) contributed 19 points, while Andre Gibbs (Smyrna, Del./Smyrna) had 10 points. Nick Christian (Bensalem, Pa./Bensalem) contributed nine points, eight rebounds, four assists, and three steals.

The Rams shot 46.4 percent (32-of-69) from the field, 37.9 percent (11-of-29) from behind the arc. Georgian Court connected at a 39.0 percent (23-of-59) clip, and 21.4 percent from three (3-of-14). The Rams won the battle of the boards, 40-35.

Georgian Court returns to action on Wednesday, November 20 for its much-anticipated home opener as the Lions welcome Mercy College to the Wellness Center for a 7:00 p.m. tip-off.