EAST STROUDSBURG -- Led by a career-best effort from Carlos Pepin, the East Stroudsburg University men's basketball team picked up its eighth win over the past 10 games with an 81-65 victory over Lock Haven on Wednesday evening inside Koehler Fieldhouse.

With the win, the Warriors (8-5, 6-3) remain in second place in the PSAC East, with a half-game lead over Millersville. The Bald Eagles fall to 6-8, 3-7 in league action and are now in sixth place in the PSAC East.

Pepin provided career-highs in both points (26) and rebounds (15), while shooting an efficient 10-of-16 from the floor. The Lodi, N.J. native also distributed a team-high four assists, while also earning two steals and a block against the Bald Eagles. He committed just one turnover in 34 minutes of action on the court.

Notables

• Justin Paz also reached double figures in scoring, adding 13 points while making half of his attempts from the field (5-10). From deep, the Allentown native converted 3-of-5 attempts. He also distributed two dimes.
• Zach Sabol tallied a season-best nine points (4-7 FG) with five rebounds, while Lakeem McAliley and Troy Jones each scored eight points. Marc Rodriguez registered seven points on the evening.
• The Warriors stifled LHU on the defensive end, allowing the Bald Eagles to shoot a season-low 30.8 percent from the field and just 2-12 from beyond the arc. The relentless ESU full-court press forced 18 turnovers, as ESU entered the contest ranked in the top-10 nationally in the category entering the night. The Bald Eagles were able to stay in the ball game by converting an impressive 88.5 percent (23-26) of their free throw attempts.  
• ESU owned the paint offensively, outscoring LHU 46-28. The Warriors also held significant advantages in bench points (28-6) and fast break points.
• LHU entered the contest with wins over Kutztown (71-69) and Mansfield (102-81) and played nationally-ranked IUP tough (L, 79-72).

How it Happened

• The Warriors built an early six-point lead at 9-3, before LHU evened the score at 9-9. With the score 11-11, ESU would jump ahead on a 17-5 scoring run, taking a 12-point lead at 28-16 with 7:23 remaining. The efficient offense shot 7-12 from the field during the scoring run and did not allow a Lock Haven field goal for a stretch of over five minutes.
• The Bald Eagles got within nine points of ESU at 28-18, but another scoring sprint from ESU, this time a 12-3 burst saw the hot-shooting Warriors take a game-high 40-22 advantage. Overall it was an 29-13 scoring ruin that saw ESU shoot 11-of-19 and LHU shoot just 3-of-17 for 9:28 of clock.
• A quick 7-0 run saw the Warrior lead drop 11 points at 40-29. After trailing by 18 points, LHU would close the half on a 10-4 sprint overall to take a 44-32 deficit into the Koehler Fieldhouse locker room. At the break, Pepin nearly had a double-double with 17 points and nine rebounds. ESU held LHU to shoot just 25 percent (9-36), while the Warriors swished 54.5 percent (18-33) of its attempts in the opening 20 minutes.
• Lock Haven would not succumb to the big first half lead, as the Bald Eagles would score 12 of the first 14 points in the second half to slice the deficit to just two points at 46-44. ESU refused to relinquish the lead, as the Warriors countered with a 9-2 sprint to take a 57-48 lead. The team's would trade buckets, as the Warriors would hold a five-plus point lead until taking control of the contest in the final 10 minutes.
• Holding a 68-59 lead, the Warriors would hold at least a 12-point lead the rest of the way, earning its eighth win over the past 10 games and its fourth win in five chances at Koehler Fieldhouse.

Up Next

• The Warriors continue their home stand at Koehler Fieldhouse on Saturday, when ESU jumps out of divisional play to host PSAC West foe Gannon. Tipoff is set for 3:00 p.m. against the Golden Knights. The Warriors complete the three game home stretch with a meeting against West Chester on Mon., January 24 at 7:30 p.m.
•  For the latest schedule updates, stay tuned to esuwarriors.com.