Box Score

SHIPPENSBURG - Junior forward Duane Johnson had 13 points, 11 rebounds, three steals and three blocks and scored East Stroudsburg University's last five points as the Warriors held off Shippensburg, 69-64, for their second road win this week in PSAC East men's basketball on Saturday at Heiges Field House.

Junior forward Terrance King and freshman guard Whis Grant both scored 14 points, senior guard Russell Graham III had 12 points and five assists and junior guard Gerald Bridges, Jr. added eight points off the bench, all in the first half, for ESU (11-7, 7-5 PSAC).

Dane Lauber scored 15 points off the bench, Will Royal had 14 and Dylan Edgar had 13 for Shippensburg (6-12, 3-9), which shot 49.0 percent but fell to 0-4 against PSAC East opponents by a total of 14 points.

Johnson dominated the final eight minutes, with eight points, six rebounds, three steals and three blocks, on the way to his third double-double of the season and the fifth of his career. The Warriors never trailed down the stretch and took the lead for good at 62-59 on a three-pointer by Grant with 4:33 left. 

The triple answered Shippensburg's next-to-last field goal, a layup by Edgar with just under five minutes left. The Raiders missed their next seven shots and had just one offensive rebound until Lauber scored the game's final points on a layup just before the buzzer.

King, coming off a career-high 26 points in an 88-76 win at Millersville on Wednesday, had an offensive rebound and putback to put ESU ahead 64-59 with 2:41 left. Ship scored the next three points at the foul line to pull within two, but a lob from Grant to Johnson for a dunk over the Shippensburg zone was a key basket with 1:32 remaining.

Ship came up empty on its next two trips to make it a one-possession game, and Johnson split one-of-two at the line for a 67-62 lead with 33 seconds left. Johnson had a block after the Raiders grabbed an offensive rebound following a missed three. Graham missed two at the line for ESU, but Johnson grabbed the rebound after another missed three and sealed the victory with two free throws with four seconds left.

There were 11 lead changes, seven in the second half, with Shippensburg holding a 34-32 lead at halftime after Graham hit a floater in the lane as time expired. The Raiders' largest lead of the half was three points (53-50) on a three-pointer by Stasyszyn with just under nine minutes remaining, but Graham scored the next time down and ESU didn't allow a point in the next three minutes.

The Raiders shot 65.0 percent (13-for-20) in the first half after entering the game ranked 16th in Division II at 49.9 percent. The Warriors' defensive effort held Ship to 37.9 percent (11-for-29) and 30 points in the second half.

ESU committed just nine turnovers, forced 15 and had a 17-7 advantage in points off turnovers. The Warriors shot 44.6 percent (25-for-56) overall and were 12-for-24 in the second half. They were 15-for-22 at the foul line for the game, 12-for-18 in the second half, with Johnson going 7-for-10 in a game-high 37 minutes.

Grant's 14 points, right on his season average of 13.9, came on a 6-for-8 day from the field. Grant opened his career with 30 points in a 96-92 loss vs. No. 6-ranked West Liberty on November 12 at Heiges Field House and had 11 in a 74-66 loss to Charleston the following day. He averaged 18.3 points and shot 52.9 percent in three games at Heiges this season.

The Warriors picked up one game on Bloomsburg for the top spot in the PSAC East with the Huskies (13-4, 9-3) falling 70-64 at West Chester on Saturday. ESU hosts Bloomsburg on Wednesday at 8 p.m. at Koehler Fieldhouse.