PITTSBURGH, Pa. – La Roche men's basketball was unable to hold off Ohio Wesleyan to close out the 2023 portion of the 2023-24 schedule, falling to the Battling Bishops 76-65 in non-conference action.

The Redhawks would never be able to hold the lead at any point of the matchup, but through the first 6:55 of play, were even at 14-14.

OWU would counter to open a 24-16 lead with a 10-2 run over the next 2:24.

Still trailing by nine at 31-22 with 7:16 remaining in the opening half, Joe Starzynski sunk two threes in a row for La Roche to cut the deficit to 31-28 with 5:49 left.

Over the remainder of the half, the Bishops outscored the Redhawks 11-2 and took a 42-30 lead into the locker room.

Out of the break, La Roche saw the OWU lead grow to as many as 16, but the Redhawks kept fighting to keep it close, knocking the edge down to single digits at 60-51 with 10:15 remaining.

Another Bishop run of 11-2 followed over the next 5:18 as La Roche now trailed 71-53 and OWU would hold on from there.

For the game, the Redhawks finished the night going 27-for-63 (42.9%) from the floor, but were 6-for-23 (26.1%) from three. From the foul line, the Redhawks capitalized on just five of nine attempts (55.6%).

On the other side, the Bishops finished 31-for-60 (51.7%) from the field, and 9-for-27 (33.3%) from deep, while going 5-for-8 (62.5%) from the foul line.

La Roche had three players in double figures, with Michael Brooks leading the way with 13 points to go along with three rebounds, three assists and a pair of steals.

Joe Starzynski netted 12 points, four rebounds, a pair of blocks and two steals, while Dawson Summers also added 12 points to the stat sheet.

The next time the Redhawks take the floor, the calendar will flip to 2024 and awaiting La Roche on Wednesday, Jan. 4 is Wells, as AMCC play takes over the schedule. Opening tip from Aurora, N.Y. is slated for 3 p.m.