ALTOONA, Pa. - In a game that featured seven ties and six lead changes, it was Pitt-Bradford which held host Penn State Altoona to just one point over the final 3:19 en route to a thrilling 58-57 victory Wednesday night at the Adler Gym.  The loss snapped the Lions' five-game winning streak and was their first at home this season.

With the score tied at 54-54, Lion guard Justin Gasbarre (Pittsburgh, PA/Bethel Park) converted a lay up with 3:19 remaining to give Altoona a two-point lead.  Bradford answered with two Shawn Spindler free throws, and after a missed Lion 3-pointer, Panther forward Aaron Stang hit what proved to be the game-winning jumper 2:37 left as the visitors claimed the 58-56 advantage.

A turnover and missed shot followed by one Sean Stewart (West Chester, PA/Unionville) free throw cut the Lion deficit to 58-57 at the 1:03 mark.  Spindler missed a trey for the Panthers, and Altoona got possession, calling timeout with 10 seconds remaining. 

But point guard Zach Spitz's (Harrisburg, PA/Susquehanna Township) fadeaway jumper with two seconds left hit the rim and bounced away, sending Penn State Altoona to 12-8 overall and 9-4 in the Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference.

Senior guard Colin Geiger (Pottstown, PA/Pottsgrove) scored 11 of his team-high 14 points in the first half, and twin brother Curtis (Pottstown, PA/Pottsgrove) finished with 11.  Altoona finished at 45% shooting on the night but made only 7-of-19 second-half field goals after shooting 52.2% in the first period.

Bradford got 13 points from Spindler, and a game-high 19 points from Dan Heisey, who also made three triples.  The Panthers converted 18-of-19 free throws including 8-for-8 in the second half and held a slight 22-20 edge in the paint.

Altoona committed an uncharacteristic 18 turnovers and shot just 66.6% from the free throw line on the game (14-of-21).  The Lions did outscore the Panther reserves 19-4 and shot 5-of-8 from 3-point range.

Pitt-Bradford shot out of the gates and led 11-4 just three minutes into the contest.  The Panthers again extended their advantage to seven midway through the half, but the Lions chipped away and reclaimed the lead on a Curtis Geiger free throw at the 2:07 mark.  Colin Geiger drained a 3-pointer before Stang connected on a jumper for UPB to set the halftime score at 33-31 in favor of Altoona.

Neither team managed to pull ahead by more than six over the final 20 minutes.  Altoona had the largest lead of the half at 52-46 on another Colin Geiger trey with less than eight minutes to play.

Heisey had 11 of his 19 points in the second half for the victors, which also sit at 9-4 in the unpredictable AMCC.

Penn State Altoona is back in action this Saturday, February 7, for a 3:00 PM tip at Penn State Behrend.