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EAST STROUDSBURG - East Stroudsburg University erased all but one point of a 25-point second-half deficit, but No. 14-ranked Kutztown held on for a 92-87 win in PSAC East men's basketball on Wednesday night at Koehler Fieldhouse, ending the Warriors' unbeaten PSAC start and eight-game winning streak.

ESU (11-4, 9-1) fell for the first time since November 23, a 79-77 loss at Chestnut Hill, and nearly extended their PSAC start to 10-0 which would have tied a school record set during the 2014 PSAC championship season.

Kutztown (12-2, 8-2) led 66-41 with 13:45 left before the Warriors rallied, starting with a 7-0 run. The margin stayed between 10 and 15 points from the 10-minute mark until an ESU flurry trimmed it to 81-73 with 5:21 left, followed by a three-pointer by sophomore guard Nick Giordano to get within five (81-76) at the 4:30 mark.

ESU closed to within three (87-84) with 1:40 left, and got it to 88-87 on two free throws by redshirt sophomore guard Jakwan Jones with 39.2 seconds remaining.

Kutztown's Austin Beidelman made two free throws with 27.1 seconds showing, and the Warriors were unable to convert at the other end. Dan Cuevas hit a pair of free throws with 9.9 seconds left to set the final margin.

ESU, which rallied from a double-figure deficit in four of its 11 wins this season, trailed 52-34 at halftime. The Warriors nearly completed their biggest comeback under 15th-year head coach Jeff Wilson (19 in a 71-61 win vs. Slippery Rock in 2004-05), and biggest second-half comeback under Wilson (16 in a 74-72 win vs. Kutztown in 2006-07).

Senior forward Rasheed Moore had 21 points and eight rebounds, his third straight 20-point game and sixth in his last nine games, to lead ESU. Moore had 23 points and 11 boards in Monday's 98-82 win vs. West Chester, when ESU scored 69 second-half points (including 16 by Moore) to come back from 11 down.

Redshirt senior guard Quindell Brice scored 13 points, and Jones (11 points, 4 assists) and Giordano (10 points - 4-for-4 shooting, 2-for-2 from 3) were both in double figures off the ESU bench. Junior forward Ralik Wise (7 points, 8 rebounds) and redshirt junior forward Steven Stoney (7 points, 5 rebounds) also contributed to a strong bench effort.

Josh Johnson, the 2016 PSAC East Athlete of the Year, had 19 points and 10 rebounds to lead five Kutztown players in double figures. Cuevas had 17 points, Ethan Ridgeway (7 assists, 8 turnovers, 5 steals) and Anthony Lee scored 16 each and Ryan Connolly added 10 for the Golden Bears, whose only two losses are to nationally-ranked IUP (away, 77-76) and Shippensburg (home, 97-82).

Kutztown shot 56.1 percent (32-for-57), including 58.8 percent in the first half, to overcome 20 turnovers.

ESU shot 43.3 percent (29-for-67) with 16 turnovers but rallied with a 6-for-10 mark from the three-point line in the second half.

Kutztown rattled off an early 11-0 run after the Warriors led 2-0 and extended its margin throughout the first half, leading by 18 (42-24) with 5:38 left and then scoring the final six points to lead by 18 again at intermission.

ESU scored the first five points of the second half, answered by five straight from KU, and it looked like the Golden Bears were going to put the game away when they scored nine straight to take their 25-point lead on a putback by Johnson with less than 14 minutes left.

The Warriors' comeback started with a three by Jones, and Moore and Wise also hit from downtown when KU threatened to pull away again. ESU scored nine straight to close a 14-point gap (81-67) to five in just 75 seconds of action, capped by Giordano's three at the 4:30 mark.

Brice and Moore both had putbacks to make it 84-80, Moore had a dunk off an assist from Brice on a broken play and Giordano's layup made it 87-84 with 1:40 to play to set up the finish.

ESU (1st, 90.6 ppg) and Kutztown (3rd, 85.9 ppg) entered among the PSAC leaders in scoring, and Johnson (1,437 points, 743 rebounds) and Moore (1,396 points, 674 rebounds) were the PSAC's top two active statistical players entering the contest.

ESU had won 11 of the last 13 vs. KU, but the Golden Bears won their second straight in the series. The Warriors had captured the last four meetings at Koehler Fieldhouse.

Kutztown improved to 3-0 vs. ESU when playing with a national ranking, previously winning two games by a total of five points during the 2009-10 season.

ESU returns to action on Saturday vs. Slippery Rock (10-6, 6-4), which won 78-72 vs. Clarion on Wednesday night to end a two-game slide. The Rock had won their previous six. Game time is 3 p.m. at Koehler Fieldhouse.


GAME NOTES
* Moore's 3 straight 20-point games (22 at Millersville, 23 vs. West Chester, 21 vs. Kutztown) are ESU's first since Whis Grant in 2013-14 (4 straight).

* Moore moved into 7th at ESU in career points (1,417), surpassing Charley German (1,412 - 1954-58).
* He ranks 8th in rebounds (682) and is 21 boards from moving into the top 5.

ESU's all-time scoring list:
2,218 - Jonathan Roberts (1986-90)
1,860 - Whis Grant (2011-15)
1,775 - Don Bones (1976-81)
1,556 - Earle Greer (1980-84)
1,483 - Keith Fisher (1987-91)
1,446 - Russ Hopewell (1958-62)
1,417 - Rasheed Moore (2013-pres.)
1,412 - Charley German (1954-58)