SHEPERDSTOWN, W. Va. -- Justin Paz, Troy Jones and Marc Rodriguez combined to shoot 12-of-20 from beyond the arc, while Carlos Pepin registered 16 points as the East Stroudsburg University men's basketball team won its fifth consecutive game with a 68-57 victory over Shepherd on Wednesday evening in the Butcher Athletic Center.
With the win, the Warriors improve to 11-5, 9-3 in PSAC action, while the Rams drop to 7-9, 3-7 in conference action.
The Warrior victory sets up a PSAC East clash with second-place ESU and first-place Shippensburg (13-5, 10-3 PSAC) on Saturday at 3:00 p.m. inside Koehler Fieldhouse. With a win against Ship, the Warriors would be sit alone in first place with a 10-3 record and hold the tiebreaker against the Raiders as conference play heads into the final month.
Notables
- Paz led ESU in scoring for the second consecutive game, firing off five 3-pointers on an efficient eight attempts for a total of 17 points. Rodriguez added four treys on five attempts for 14 total points, while Jones also found his stroke from long distance with three triples on six attempts for a total of 13 points. The Warrior trio combined for 44 points and the efficient 3-point clinic of 12-for-20.
- Pepin, the reigning PSAC East Athlete of the Week reached double-figures in scoring for the eighth consecutive game, registering 16 points on a efficient 5-for-6 shooting performance. From the stripe, he made 6-of-8 attempts. He was the lone Warrior to earn chances at the foul line and also led the Warrior charge off the boards with six rebounds and also distributed four assists and earned a pair of steals.
- Rodriguez and Zion Darby each contributed five rebounds, while Jones added four caroms.
- The Warriors shot above 50 percent from the field for the fifth time this season (50.9%, 29-57) and its team 3-point percentage of 48.1 percent (13-27) is the third most efficient output of the season.
- The Rams were led by Kyle Daggett, who recorded 23 points (11-17 FG) and eight rebounds.
- ESU is now 3-3 all-time against the Rams and picked up its second road win and first since the 2012-13 season. In conference games, the Warriors lead the all-time series by a 2-1 mark since the Rams joined the PSAC in 2019-20.
How It Happened
- After Shepherd grabbed the contests' first lead at 4-0, ESU raced away with a 12-2 sprint to grab an early 17-7 lead. The Rams would not allow ESU to build a bigger lead, chipping away with a 10-2 run to make it a two-point game at 24-22. The two teams traded points, as Shepherd would retake at 28-26 advantage. Ultimately, the Warriors and Rams would go into the locker room tied up at 28-28 following a Rodriguez jumper.
- Following the intermission, the teams would trade points and leads. With ESU leading 43-40, a 7-0 sprint from Shepherd lifted the Rams to a 47-43 lead. The Warriors fought right back with a Mike Millsip jumper and a Paz trey as ESU quickly retook the scoring advantage.
- With the score tied at 50-50, ESU closed the game strong on a 27-11 run, making five of their final seven attempts from 3-point land. The Warrior defense clamped down as its offense found its stroke, allowing SU to shoot just 4-of-14 from the field and 1-of-9 from long distance over the final 10 minutes of play to secure the win in West Virginia.
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