PHILADELPHIA, Pa.- The Caldwell University men's basketball team came up short to Philadelphia University 71-62 in Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference play.
 
The Cougars fall to 13-11 overall and 8-8 in the CACC, while the Rams improve to 17-8 and 13-3 in conference play.
 
The teams traded leads in the early going with the Rams leading 17-15 at the 13:41 mark. Caldwell raced into the lead with a 15-3 run over the next 10 minutes. Sophomore Thomas Elliott-Smith (Plymouth, England) netted six points, while freshman Zay Jennings (Allentown, Pa.) chipped in four points.
 
Senior Austin Woods (Milford, Conn.) capped the run with a lay-up at the 3:10 mark to put Caldwell ahead 30-20. Philadelphia closed the gap late but the Cougars held a 32-24 lead at halftime.
 
The Rams rallied to start the second half as they pulled even at 40 with 11:38 left in the game. Freshman Vaughn Covington (Sicklerville, N.J.) drained a triple to put the Cougars back in front by three points.
 
Philadelphia netted back to back triples as they pushed ahead 53-47 with 7:23 left in the game. The Cougars answered as they closed the gap to three points late in the contest. Jennings scored in the paint with 3:10 remaining in the game as Caldwell trimmed the score to 59-56. The Rams held off a late charge by the Cougars down the stretch to hold on for the win.
 
Junior Derek Dorn (New Rochelle, N.Y.) led the Cougars with 11 points, four rebounds, five assists and two steals. Covington chipped in 10 points, three boards and two assists, while freshman Eric Johnson-Alford (Clifton, N.J.) finished with 10 points, four rebounds and two blocks. Woods tallied eight points, six rebounds and two blocks.
 
The Cougars are back in action on Wednesday, February 15 as they host Felician University in a CACC clash at 7:30 pm.