DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – The Wilkes men's basketball team picked up a hard-fought non-conference victory over their Colonel counterparts from Centre College in the team's first game of the Florida Sunshine Shootout by a score of 56-53 on Thursday night at the Ocean Center.
 
The win advanced Wilkes' record to 9-1 overall while Centre College dropped to 4-7 on the season.
 
Cayden Merrifield (Scranton, PA/West Scranton) delivered a three-pointer to start off the scoring for Wilkes, which knotted the score at 3-3. The Colonels' first lead of the game came at 15:30 in the first half when Joey Zvorsky (New Cumberland, PA/Cedar Cliff) knocked down the second deep ball of the night to put Wilkes up 8-5.
 
Shortly thereafter, the Colonels from Centre College would go on a 5-0 run to tie the game up at 10-10 with 13:51 remaining in the half. The streak was snapped by yet another Wilkes trey ball, this time from Lucas Lesko (Northampton, PA/Northampton).
 
Following a lengthy stretch of scoreless back-and-forth action, both teams regained their scoring touch and found themselves locked in a one-possession game. With under six minutes to go in the first, Wilkes led 19-16 thanks to an in-the-paint bucket by Lesko.
 
Centre picked up a layup with just under a minute to go in the first frame to tie the game at 23 points. Neither Colonel offense could pull ahead, sending both teams back to their respective locker rooms knotted at 23-23.
 
After 20 minutes of action, Wilkes had shot 30.8 percent from three point territory. Lesko contributed 10 points to the box score while Jack Argento (Hershey, PA/Hershey) racked up five rebounds in the first half. Centre College finished the first frame shooting 27.3 percent from the field and a perfect 3-3 at the line.
 
Both teams traded two-pointers to open the second half before Matthew Davidheiser (Reading, PA/Exeter Township) knocked down a shot from downtown to give Wilkes a 28-27 advantage.
 
The Centre College Colonels refused to give any ground and continued to cut their deficit. They eventually evened the game up at 33 apiece with roughly 15 minutes remaining in regulation.
 
The Wilkes offense went on a crucial seven-point run to open their lead up to seven points thanks to a deep ball from Argento, accompanied by a pair of shots inside the arc by Lesko.
 
Centre answered back with a pair of buckets of their own, knotting the game once again at 40-40 halfway through the second half. Argento and Zvorsky delivered back-to-back shots inside the paint to reclaim the Colonel lead 44-40.
 
With just over six minutes to go in the contest, Trent Fisher (Sellersville, PA/Pennridge) matched the team's highest lead of the evening with a layup that put Wilkes up 51-44. After a Centre three-pointer, Argento followed by hitting a crucial pair of free throws to maintain a six-point advantage for Wilkes.
 
Centre College went on a 6-1 run to finish the game, however the late push wasn't enough as a last-second three pointer didn't fall, allowing Wilkes to claim the victory 56-53.
 
Lesko led the Colonels with 23 points and six boards. Merrifield, Zvorsky and Davidheiser each knocked down two shots from beyond the arc while Argento snagged seven rebounds.
 
The Colonels from Centre College picked up 20 points from Cade Stinnett, who also led the team with seven boards. Stinett and Jaxson Banks each hit a pair of three-pointers on the night.
 
The Colonels return to action Friday night with a 6:00 p.m. matchup against the Hamline University Pipers in their second and final game of the Florida Sunshine Shootout.