KUTZTOWN, Pa. – Behind four players in double figures and a big run to end the first half, the Lock Haven University men's basketball team (7-12, 4-11 PSAC) picked up a critical road win on Saturday with a 71-61 victory at Kutztown University (7-14, 4-11 PSAC) in Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) men's basketball action.
The win snapped a five-game skid for the Bald Eagles as the schedule now turns to a critical phase ahead of next month's PSAC tournament.
Kutztown ran out to an early 9-4 advantage in the first half before Lock Haven surged back to gain the lead midway through the opening stanza. An
Eli Washington (Lancaster, Pa./Hempfield) layup with 14:28 to play in the first half started a 10-4 spurt for the Bald Eagles.
James Price (Joppa, Md./Archbishop Curley) converted on a layup to hand Lock Haven its first lead of the afternoon at a 14-13 tally with 10 and change to play in the first half.
Following the Bald Eagles run, Kutztown regained the lead in a back-and-forth affair. Washington responded with a pair of free throws with 5:45 to play in the first half as LHU knotted the game up and looked to regain the lead for good. After the Washington conversions at the charity stripe, the Bald Eagles scored 12 of the next 14 points to take a 33-23 lead into the locker room.
The Lock Haven defense was stellar over the opening 20 minutes, limiting Kutztown to a 25% (9-of-36) effort from the floor. On offense, the Bald Eagles were efficient shooting 12-of-30 from the floor for a 40% effort. Washington led the way for the Crimson and White in the first half with 14 points on 4-of-6 shooting.
Out of the halftime break,
Jesse McPherson (Philadelphia, Pa./Archbishop Carroll) opened the scoring with a hook shot in the lane and later added a trey as Lock Haven built its largest lead to that point in the afternoon, at a 40-25 margin with 17:28 to play.
Kutztown pulled to within 10 points with 13:56 to play but Lock Haven responded to the Golden Bears run with one of its own. McPherson powered down a slam to open an 11-2 run and the two teams traded scores over the remainder of the contest as Lock Haven eventually rode away from Kutztown with a 71-61 victory.
Washington led all scorers with a game-high 22 points on an efficient 8-of-10 effort from the floor. McPherson added 15, while
DaQuan Granberry (Linwood, Pa./Chichester) tallied 11 and
MarkAnthony Fidelis (Largo, Md./DeMatha) chipped in 10 points to round out a quartet of Bald Eagles in double figures. Aside from his game-high 22 points, Washington also contributed six assists to lead the way for Lock Haven's offense.
Isaiah Stewart (Madison, Wis./Madison La Follette) pulled down a game and career high 10 rebounds as the Bald Eagles owned a slim 39-38 advantage on the glass.
Up Next:
The Bald Eagles return to Thomas Fieldhouse to host Mansfield on Wednesday, February 9th. That matchup is set to tip-off at 7:30 p.m.
