INDIANA, Pa. – The LHU men's basketball team (4-6, 1-5 PSAC) was defeated by No. 9 IUP (10-1, 5-1 PSAC) 68-93 in Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) play Friday evening.

Lock Haven hopped out to an early lead over the Crimson Hawks, going up 10-6 before an 11-point run by IUP would put the home team on top. The Crimson Hawks continued to push ahead throughout the first half, increasing the deficit to 19 points before LHU tallied three points in the final minute of the half to cut the lead to 15.

IUP continued to put the offensive pressure on in the second half, pushing ahead 76-41 at the halfway mark of the period. The Bald Eagles pushed back in the final stretch, outscoring the Crimson Hawks 21-8 in the last seven minutes, but were unable to make up the deficit, falling to IUP 68-93.

Christian Kelly (Phoenixville, Pa./Phoenixville) led the Bald Eagles with 19 points and six rebounds, while Matt Cerruti (Huntingdon Valley, Pa./Archbishop Wood) tallied 11 points, three rebounds, and three steals. Jesse McPherson (Philadelphia/Archbishop Carroll) and Markanthony Fidelis (Largo, Md. / Dematha) chipped in with nine points each. Fidelis led Lock Haven with five steals.

Cerruti's layup with 8:11 left in the second half marked points 999 and 1,000 for the junior guard. Cerruti became LHU's 20^th member of the 1,000-point club and is the first Bald Eagle to reach the milestone since Ra'eese Hunt did so during the 2017-18 season. Cerruti is the fifth LHU player to reach 1,000 points under head coach Mike Nestor's guidance.

UP NEXT: The Bald Eagles return to action on Monday, Jan. 6 when they travel to Kutztown to face off against the Golden Bears. Tip-off is set for 7:30 p.m.