Box Score

ERIE - Senior forward Duane Johnson had 19 points and nine rebounds, including the game-sealing three-pointer with 11 seconds left, as defending PSAC champion East Stroudsburg University opened its conference schedule with a 67-62 win at Mercyhurst on Saturday afternoon.

Johnson just missed his fourth straight 20-point game, sophomore guard Whis Grant scored 18 points and senior forward Gerald Bridges had 11 for the Warriors (4-1, 1-0), who won a rematch of a 66-58 victory over Mercyhurst in last year's PSAC semifinal on their way to the second championship in school history.

There were 15 ties and 14 lead changes - including five of each in the second half - as ESU overcame a seven-point deficit (37-30) at the 16-minute mark. The Warriors outscored the Lakers 23-10 over the next eight minutes to take their largest lead of the game at 53-47 on a three-pointer by Bridges with eight minutes to play. The stretch included a 12-2 run that turned a 43-38 deficit into a 50-45 lead.

Mercyhurst (2-3, 0-1) All-PSAC West forward Luis Leao (24 points, 8 rebounds) drew the Lakers even at 56-56 with 5:00 left, but ESU scored the next five points - a free throw by sophomore forward Lamont Tillery, a jumper by Grant and a dunk by senior forward Terrance King on an assist by senior guard Blair Ramsey - to establish some breathing room.

Mercyhurst got within 62-60 when Leao scored with 1:23 left, Bridges put the Warriors back up by four with two free throws, and Leao hit a pair at the other end to trim ESU's margin to 64-62 with 50 seconds left. The Warriors turned it over, but Mercyhurst's Terrance Ingram missed a layup and Johnson grabbed the defensive rebound.

After running the shot clock down, Johnson hit a three with five seconds left on the timer to give ESU a five-point edge. Leao missed a three at the other end as time expired as the Warriors prevailed.

In the first half, neither team led by more than four points and there were 10 ties and nine lead changes in a very competitive opening period. Johnson and Grant had 10 points each at the half as Mercyhurst led, 29-28.

ESU shot 38.0 percent (19-for-50) overall, 6-for-16 from three-point distance and 23-for-30 at the foul line while committing just 11 turnovers and forcing 16 by the Lakers. The Warriors also held a 10-rebound advantage (31-21) and had 12 offensive boards, including five by Johnson.

Sophomore guard Matt Tobin scored eight points and hit two three-pointers, including the game-tying three (43-43) after Mercyhurst had retaken the lead. Tillery scored six points and King had five points and four rebounds after being limited by foul trouble in the first half.

In last year's PSAC semifinal at West Chester, ESU opened the second half on a 19-2 run to sprint past the Lakers on their way to a 66-58 win. The Warriors won the PSAC title that next night, 90-85 over West Chester, and open this year as the PSAC East preseason favorite after receiving seven of eight first-place votes in the coaches' preseason poll.

ESU opens the season with at least a 4-1 record for the fourth time in five years. The Warriors topped WVIAC schools Alderson-Broaddus and Shepherd in a season-opening tournament at Shepherd, fell 68-53 at University of the Sciences and beat PSU-Lehigh Valley 101-62 in their home opener on Monday.

The Warriors play the second end of this weekend's trip on Sunday at Gannon (5-0, 1-0), which beat Kutztown 67-56 on Saturday.

GAME NOTES
* Grant went over the 500-point mark (514) in his 36th career game. He led the Warriors with 13.9 points per game last year, becoming the first freshman to lead a PSAC championship team in scoring in at least 25 years.
* It marks the third straight game that an ESU player has reached a significant scoring milestone. King went over 1,000 career points vs. PSU-Lehigh Valley, and Johnson went over 1,000 at USciences.
* Johnson scored 21 points vs. Shepherd and 20 each against USciences and PSU-Lehigh Valley. On Monday, he became the first ESU player since Rich Baker (2003-04) to score 20 points in three straight games.
* Johnson leads the Warriors with 19.2 points per game (96 in five games), followed by Grant (16.6) and King (12.0). Johnson, a returning All-PSAC East first team pick, also leads ESU with 6.4 rebounds per game.