WILLIAMSPORT, PA (December 13, 2023) -- A career outing that saw Carmine Castiello pour in a career-high 30 points helped propel the King's College men's basketball team to a 100-94 win at Penn College in Williamsport on Wednesday evening. The Monarchs win their seventh straight and improve to 8-2 heading into the holiday break, while the Wildcats drop to 4-7.
 
King's (8-2) jumped out of the gates with a 7-0 run over the first 1:22 of play before Penn College (4-7) got on the board with two quick buckets. A 12-4 spurt saw the Monarchs take a 10-point edge, 19-9, with 15:25 to go in the half, but the Wildcats did not allow King's to run away with the contest. The game turned into a battle in the remaining minutes of the first, featuring five ties and five lead changes that saw Penn College with a 50-46 advantage at the break.
 
It was a back-and-forth effort to start the second before a three from Castiello gave King's the lead, 59-56, with 16:35 to play. The Wildcats responded with two scores before Garrett Burys and Eamonn Walsh combined for 11 points in a 14-4 rally as the Monarchs edge swelled to nine, 73-64, with 11:59 left. Penn College continued to battle with King's until the Monarchs pushed their lead to double digits, 87-77, on a layup from Castiello with 2:20 on the clock.
 
The game remained a high-intensity match up with neither team letting off the gas pedal. The host Wildcats closed within a one-possession game, 97-94, with 16 ticks left on the game clock, but King's went 3-for-4 from the charity stripe in the final 11 seconds to secure the 100-94 victory on the road on Tuesday night.
 
Castiello led all scorers with his career-best 30 points, shooting 11-for-16 from the floor and 6-of-8 from beyond the arc while adding four rebounds, two assists, and a steal. Walsh added 18 points on a 6-of-11 effort with five boards, three assists, and a steal, while Chris Patton contributed 13 points with five caroms and a pair of helpers. Burys rounded out the double-digit scorers with a 12-point effort, connecting for 5-of-6 from the floor, and Jake Karnish filled the stat sheet with team-highs of nine rebounds, six dimes, and three steals to go along with eight points.
 
Gavin Barrett paced the Wildcats with a double-double of 21 points and 14 assists, adding two steals and four boards, while Livingston Cross totaled 16 points and nine rebounds.
 
King's poured in another sharp-shooting night, connecting for 49.3% (33-67) from the floor and 50% (9-18) from three. The Monarchs assisted on 18 of their 33 baskets, while the defense limited Penn College to 25.9% (7-27) from beyond the arc. King's won the rebounding margin in their victory, 38-34, and out scored the Wildcats 12-8 in second-chance points.
 
The Monarchs will be off for the holiday break before returning to play on Saturday, December 30 as they host the University of Scranton in their final non-conference match up of the 2023-24 season. Tip off is scheduled for 2:00 p.m. in McGrane Gymnasium.