SLIPPERY ROCK — What Jeff Loughry had in mind and what he got were two different things.

Grove City's boys basketball coach knew his team would be facing Slippery Rock star forward Ryan Dutton in Friday's Region 5 meeting.

“I figured if we could hold him to 15 points or fewer, we'd have a good shot at winning,” said Loughry. “I never thought we would hold him to eight.”

That's what Dutton, who entered the night averaging nearly 20 points per game, scored against the Eagles.

No Rocket player scored in double figures as Grove City rolled to a 59-35 road win.

“This is no disrespect to Grove City, they did some good things tonight,” said Slippery Rock coach Randy Armagost. “But they didn't do anything that caused us to play the way we did.

“We don't know if we can win games, that's what we're battling right now,” he added. “We play timid and we have to get over it.”

Following Dutton's 3-pointer early in the first quarter, Grove City went on a 13-0 run and led 17-5 at the end of the period.

The Rockets (1-3, 0-1) rebounded with 14 points in the second, despite Dutton being held scoreless. He ended the game 3-of-11 from the field and 0-of-4 from the free throw line.

“He missed some shots that he normally makes, from the tapes on him I've seen,” admitted Loughry. “He's a great player, a legitimate player, but he has to do a lot for that team.”

Dutton attempted only five shots in the second half, draining a 3-pointer and scoring on an emphatic dunk in the third quarter.

“Sometimes Ryan tries to do too much,” added Armagost. “He just needs to let the game come to him.”

The Rockets pulled to within 31-24 when Nick Wherthey sank a putback with six minutes left in the third, but the Eagles dropped a 26-6 run on their rivals, including a 12-0 spurt to start the fourth quarter.

“We're a bit deeper than them and I think our depth wore them down in the second half,” said Loughry.

Sophomore guard Logan Lutz scored 12 points for Grove City (3-2, 1-0) and Kameron Patterson added 11.

“He (Lutz) plays with all guts,” said Loughry. “He was our sixth or seventh guy last year and played very well until breaking his ankle with four weeks left in the season.

“I never had a kid who was a captain as a sophomore, but he earns it every day.”

Rod Williams paced the Rockets with nine points.

GROVE CITY 59

Kyle Barger 2 0-0 4, Andrew Mason 2 0-2 4, Kameron Patterson 4 1-1 11, Martin Beatty 3 2-2 8, Brayden Martin 3 0-0 7, Isaac Thrasher 3 0-0 7, Logan Lutz 3 6-7 12, Caden Mattocks 1 4-5 6, Qadir Muhammad 0 0-0 0, Brady Callahan 0 0-0 0, Carter Chinn 0 0-0 0. Totals: 21 13-17 59.

SLIPPERY ROCK 35

Hunter Prementine 1 0-2 3, Nick Stutz 2 1-2 6, Ryan Dutton 3 0-4 8, Nick Wherthey 1 1-2 3, Stephen Heller 0 2-2 2, Luke Brandon 1 2-2 4, Rod Williams 4 1-2 9. Totals: 12 7-16 35.

Grove City 17 12 16 14 — 59

Slippery Rock5 14 11 5 — 35

3-point goals: Grove City 4 (Patterson 2, Martin, Thrasher); Slippery Rock 4 (Dutton 2, Prementine, Stutz).

Tuesday: Grove City vs. Penn Hills at New Castle Tournament

Wednesday: Slippery Rock vs. Laurel at Mercer Tournament