Box Score l
Photo Gallery
EAST STROUDSBURG –
Whis Grant and
Jamal Nwaniemeka scored 19 points each and
Matt Tobin had 11 points and 11 assists, leading No. 10-ranked East Stroudsburg University to a 101-71 win over Shippensburg and school single-season record 15th consecutive win on Saturday afternoon at Koehler Fieldhouse.
Tobin, who had nine points and 13 assists in an 81-68 win at Pitt-Johnstown on Wednesday, is the first ESU player with 10+ assists in consecutive games under 12th-year head coach
Jeff Wilson, as the Warriors won by double figures for the 13th time in 15 games.
The Warriors, already off to the best start in program history, surpassed their 1940-41 and 2012-13 teams which both had 14-game winning streaks. They also matched the 2005-06 team's best-ever PSAC East start at 5-0 as they defend their second division title in four years.
ESU's unbeaten start is the longest in the PSAC since 1994-95, when IUP won its first 21 games of the season.
Redshirt junior guard
Will Brown added 10 points and was one of four ESU players to hit multiple three-pointers. The Warriors hit 13 three's in all, giving them 40 in the last three games – including 15 in a 101-69 win over Clarion, and 12 at UPJ.
Freshman forward
Rasheed Moore added nine points and 11 rebounds, just missing his third double-double of the season.
ESU was hot from the three-point line early but Shippensburg stayed in it, leading 27-21 with seven minutes left in the first half before the Warriors took control.
A 24-8 run to close the half gave them a 45-35 halftime margin, and they left no doubt, going on an 11-0 run to start the second half to take a 21-point lead.
Jay Hardy had 17 points and eight rebounds, Sam Pygatt scored 14 points and Joe Lococo, the PSAC's third-leading scorer (20.1 ppg), had 12 for Shippensburg (2-12, 0-4).
Grant scored 10 points, including a pair of three's, to spearhead the run to finish the first half, then hit another three to open the second half scoring for 13 of his 19 points in a span of five minutes. He finished 5-for-10 from long distance, making five three's for the third time this year and sixth time in his career.
Nwaniemeka opened the game with a four-point play and stayed hot, averaging 19.3 points over the last four games, including 25 vs. Clarion and 20 at Pitt-Johnstown. Brown scored in double figures for the seventh time this year, and hit two or more three's for the 11th time in 15 games.
ESU had a 15-7 advantage in turnovers, right at its season average of +8.6, and a 22-to-7 assist to turnover ratio led by Tobin's 11-to-1 mark.
Tobin entered as the PSAC leader in assists (5.3), assist-to-turnover ratio (2.7) and steals (2.2). He has a 24-to-3 ratio in the last two games.
The Warriors head to Bloomsburg (8-5, 4-0), the PSAC East co-leader, on Wednesday. The Huskies were idle this weekend and fell 63-53 at No. 6-ranked IUP last Wednesday.
GAME NOTES
* ESU scored 100 points for the 5th time this season. That ties the school's highest mark, set in 1970-71 and equaled in 1993-94.
* ESU is ranked in the top 10 in DII for the 4th week in program history. The Warriors were also ranked No. 10 last week. They were ranked in the top 10 twice during the 2012-13 season.
* Head coach
Jeff Wilson improves to 198-127 in his 12th season. He ranks second in school history in career wins behind Ken Sisson (215-245 in 19 years – 1963-78, 79-83).
* On Wednesday at UPJ, ESU surpassed the school record for an unbeaten start (13-0), set in 2009-10.
* ESU's 15 straight wins marks the longest single-season streak in school history. The Warriors had an 18-game winning streak spanning the 1941-42 and 1942-43 seasons, and a 16-game streak spanning 1931-32 and 1932-33.
* ESU's 1940-41 and 2012-13 teams both had 14-game win streaks.
* ESU's 11 straight wins against PSAC schools this year are tied for the 3rd-most in school history. The Warriors won 15 straight vs. PSAC schools spanning the 1940-41 and 1941-42 seasons, and 14 straight last year (2012-13).
* The Warriors have an all-time record of 994-975 as they approach the 1,000th win in program history.
* When posting +5 turnover margin, ESU is: 12-0 this year, 27-2 the last 2 years, and 47-10 since the start of the 2009-10 season.
* The Warriors are 97-37 since the start of the 2009-10 season.
* ESU has made 10+ 3-pointers in three straight games for the first time under Wilson – making 12+ 3's in all three games.
* Grant is 16th at ESU with 1,176 career points, passing Pete Pasko (1,162 – 1941-43), who was the program's first 1,000-point scorer.
* Grant is 3rd among active DII juniors in career points.
* He passed Andy Heimbach (1,153 - 2006-10) and Todd Painton (1,144 - 1988-92) on ESU's scoring list on Wednesday at UPJ.
* Tobin is the 2nd Warrior under Wilson to post a double-double in points and assists, joining Anthony Ross, who had 32 points and 12 assists in a triple-overtime game at California in 2004-05.
* ESU has won 13 of its 15 games by double figures, with an average margin of victory of 21.4 points per game (88.2 ppg to 66.8 ppg).
* During ESU's 14-game winning streak last year (2012-13), ESU had an average margin of 15.5 points per game (79.0 to 63.5).
* During ESU's 14-game winning streak in 1940-41, ESU had an average margin of 21.8 points per game (60.3 to 38.5)