Box Score

BLOOMSBURG – No. 25-ranked East Stroudsburg University came back from 15 points down in the final 7:35 of regulation and outlasted Bloomsburg for a 101-96 win in double overtime to improve to 15-1 on the season on Wednesday night at Nelson Field House.

The Warriors (15-1, 2-1) never led in regulation but overcame a 69-54 deficit to force overtime with a 25-10 run down the stretch, sparked by two three-pointers by freshman guard Gerald Bridges, Jr. as part of a lineup that had four freshmen on the floor along with senior point guard Robby Pines.

The second three-pointer by Bridges, Jr. cut the Bloomsburg (6-9, 0-3) lead to 73-66 with 4:30 left. Freshman forward Marcus Brown scored the next four points, on an offensive rebound and putback and a layup following a steal by Pines, that brought the Warriors within one possession for the first time since the first three minutes of the game.

Bloomsburg pushed the lead back to seven on a layup and two free throws by Ruben Britt, who scored a game-high 29 points, but ESU rallied to score the final seven points to send the game to overtime. Britt missed a layup with two minutes left and junior guard Micah Covert converted a three-point play at the other end to make the score 79-75, Pines set up a layup by freshman forward Terrance King, and junior forward Mike Tobin made two free throws with 37 seconds remaining to tie the game.

Tobin had a steal to give ESU the final possession of regulation, but the Warriors turned the ball over in the back court in the final five seconds and Britt's half-court shot hit the rim as time expired.

The Warriors took their first lead of the game on a layup by King to start overtime, and neither team led by more than two points in the first session. Bloomsburg led 86-84 when ESU senior guard Andy Heimbach was fouled on a three-pointer with 13 seconds left. Heimbach made the first two to even the score at 86-all but missed the third. Bloomsburg managed a contested jumper by Trevon Johnson that missed as time expired.

ESU owned the second overtime, outscoring the Huskies 15-10, and took a four-point lead (93-89) on a three-pointer by Heimbach with three minutes to play. Pines scored to put the Warriors ahead by six with a minute left and made two free throws to keep it a six-point game in the final minute. Freshman forward Duane Johnson iced the game with a pair at the line after rebounding his own miss following a 1-for-2 trip with 16 seconds left.

Pines led the Warriors with a career-high 18 points and made his first 10 free throws before missing two in the final five seconds of the second overtime. He was 4-for-4 at the line in regulation and hit his first six free throws in overtime while also contributing two three-pointers, six rebounds and four assists.

Heimbach finished with 14 points, leaving him one point away from the 1,000-point mark for his career at ESU. Covert also scored 14 points, King scored 11 and Johnson had 10 points and six rebounds. Tobin contributed eight points and nine boards.

ESU shot 50 percent from the field – 68 percent (17-for-25) in the second half and 57 percent (4-for-7) in overtime – and made 10 three-pointers, including two each by Heimbach, Pines, Covert and Bridges, Jr., who had made six three-pointers on the season before hitting twice in the final six minutes. The top free throw shooting team in the PSAC was 29-for-39 (74.4 percent) at the line, right at their season average of 72.9 entering the game.

Bloomsburg made seven field goals over the final 17:35 after taking its largest lead of the game. The Huskies came out firing, hitting their first eight shots from the field in the first half and shooting 59 percent (29-for-49) in regulation, but were just 6-for-15 from the field and 4-for-9 at the foul line in the two overtime periods.

Britt was 9-for-12 from the field and 11-for-12 at the foul line for his 29 points. Trevon Johnson (17), Larry Webster (16) and Jamar Smack (11) were also in double figures for the Huskies, who jumped out to leads of 15-4 and 23-9 and held a 35-27 advantage at halftime. ESU made it a six-point game twice early in the second half but Bloomsburg remained in control until the Warriors put together their run to come all the way back to finish regulation.