Box Score

CHEYNEY – Freshman guard Will Brown scored 20 points, including the go-ahead three-pointer with 23 seconds left and two free throws after a steal in the final 10 seconds, to give East Stroudsburg University a 75-72 win at Cheyney to open the second half of PSAC East play on Saturday afternoon at Cope Hall.

Will Brown and sophomore forward Marcus Brown combined to score 12 of ESU's final 17 points as the Warriors (11-9, 4-4) and Wolves (13-7, 3-5) battled through seven lead changes and eight ties in the final nine minutes.

The Warriors' freshman didn't miss a shot in the second half, going 3-for-3 from the field including two three-pointers and 4-for-4 at the foul line, as ESU overcame a deficit that was as high as 12 points in the first half and settled at six points (36-30) at halftime.

The only basket of the game by sophomore forward Terrance King capped a 13-4 run and gave the Warriors their first lead of the game, 56-54, with 8:38 left to set up a typical ESU-Cheyney finish. The Warriors are 7-5 against Cheyney in their last 12 meetings, with eight games decided by four points or less, including a 78-75 (OT) win in the conference opener on January 12. ESU has won at Cheyney in back-to-back years for the first time since 2000 and 2001.

The Warriors answered every Cheyney basket over the final four minutes as the Browns came up huge for ESU in the end.

Antonio Boyd converted a three-point play to put the Wolves ahead 68-65 before Marcus Brown did the same for the Warriors at the other end. After a bucket by David Burton, senior guard Micah Covert scored at the end of the shot clock to tie the game at 70-all with 2:35 left, and neither team scored again until Boyd made two free throws to give Cheyney a 72-70 lead with 52 seconds remaining.

Will Brown drilled his final three-pointer with 10 seconds left on the shot clock to put ESU back in front, the eighth triple he has hit in the final minute of a game, then stole an inbounds pass with six seconds left on one of the Warriors' most critical defensive possessions of the season. He hit both free throws with four seconds remaining to extend the lead to 75-72, and Sharif Bray's game-tying three-pointer rimmed out to give ESU the win.

ESU shot 54.5 percent for the game and was 14-for-21 in the second half, and 80.8 percent at the foul line (15-17 in the second half) to sweep the regular season series from Cheyney for the second straight year. Cheyney shot 45.6 percent overall but just 37 percent (10-27) from the field and 2-for-9 from the three-point line after halftime.

Sophomore forward Duane Johnson scored 10 of his 16 points in the second half to help the Warriors rally and was 6-for-9 from the field with five assists. Will Brown was also 6-for-9 for the game and shot 4-for-7 from long distance, senior forward Mike Tobin scored 11 points, Covert had eight points and four assists and Marcus Brown scored all seven of his points in the second half.

Burton led Cheyney with 21 points (13 in the second half), Bruce Kennedy scored 16 points, Bray had 14 and Rob Townsend scored 10. Kennedy had 11 points to carry the Wolves in the opening period, while Bray, Burton and Antonio Boyd (seven points) had Cheyney's final 20 points of the contest.

ESU hosts Mansfield and West Chester in conference action this week and is tied for third in the PSAC East with a 4-4 divisional record. Elsewhere around the conference on Saturday, Mansfield (5-3) fell 64-51 at West Chester (3-5) to drop two games behind Kutztown (6-1), which had its home game with Shippensburg (2-5) postponed due to weather. Millersville and Bloomsburg are also 4-4 after the Marauders won a triple overtime thriller, 108-103.