LATROBE, Pa. - The Cougars' Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) title defense was ended by Saint Vincent (23-3, 17-3) at the Robert S. Carey Student Center. In the semifinal matchup, Chatham had its best distance shooting night (61.5%) but free throw struggles and turnovers played a role in the loss. 

Four players scored over double digits, led by sophomore Diaun Pinkett's efficient 24-point double-double (7-9 field goals, 13 rebounds). Junior Blaine Gartley neared a triple-double with 19 points, nine rebounds and seven assists. Graduate Student Elijah Sutton's night ended early after fouling out, but not before he recorded 16 points and five rebounds. Finally, senior Simon Boyer had 14 points on 5-14 shooting. 

The Cougars blitzed the host Bearcats early with a 9-0 run in the first three minutes. Saint Vincent responded with their own 7-0 run to close the gap. Pinkett's first three of the game started an 11-4 run capped off by another three by senior Geoffrey Helm. A scoring drought plagued both teams for five minutes, as there was a combined five total points scored from 11:59 to 7:05. With 3:36 remaining in the half, Pinkett's second three of the game extended the Cougars' lead to 10 (30-20), but the Bearcats used a 15-8 run to tie the game at 35. Then, Gartley took the inbound off a made free-throw coast to coast to give Chatham a two-point advantage at the buzzer. 

The second half saw the Cougars continue their hot shooting (12-23 from the field and 3-4 from three), starting with a made three by senior Luca Robinson. However, Saint Vincent outscored Chatham 19-10 halfway through the second, including an 8-0 run to take a seven-point advantage (54-47). A Gartley layup brought the Cougars to within one with 5:45 remaining. Back-to-back threes by the Bearcats gave them another seven-point lead. Sophomore Dev Ostrowski scored 10 of Saint Vincent's final 14 points to give his team a five-point edge with 1:21 remaining. Gartley made a layup to make the score 69-72, then the Cougars followed with a defensive stop with a chance to tie. Sutton isolated on a drive to the basket and converted on an and-one opportunity to tie the game. 

To start overtime, a foul by Robinson on a rebound attempt sent sophomore Jaden Gales to the line who went 1-for-2. Then, Sutton's last foul put Saint Vincent's Taylor McNeal at the charity stripe who also missed one. After the miss, Pinkett was fouled on a layup and converted the and-one to give the Cougars a one-point lead. Ostrowski nailed his fourth triple of the game to take a two-point lead, but Boyer responded with a turnaround jump shot to take the 79-77 upper hand. This lead was the last for Chatham as Saint Vincent closed the game on an 11-4 scoring run. 

Overall, the Cougars shot 50% (29-58) from the field and made 8-13 threes in the loss. The Cougars converted 65.4% (17-26) of their free throws and had 13 of their 20 turnovers in the second half and overtime. 

Chatham ends the year with its most wins in the PAC since joining in 2015 and saw multiple records broken this season.