EAST STROUDSBURG – Trailing 16-13, the East Stroudsburg University men's basketball team closed the first half with a 36-17 scoring run and held at least a 12-point lead the entire second half to cruise to a 93-66 win over Slippery Rock in a PSAC crossover on Friday night inside Koehler Fieldhouse.
The Warriors (10-1, 4-1 PSAC) close the calendar year with a triumph, while The Rock (9-2, 3-2 PSAC) sees its three-game winning streak come to a halt.
2022 PSAC East Athlete of the Year Carlos Pepin paced the game in points (23), rebounds (12) and steals (5), while adding four assists and shot 9-14 from the field and 4-of-5 from the free-throw line for his third consecutive double-double and his fifth in 11 games this season.
Lakeem McAliley added 22 points and eight rebounds and four steals, while Jaelen McGlone also reached double-figures with 11 points and five rebounds, three assists and three steals.
Notables
- Pepin and McAliley combined for 45 points, 20 rebounds, six assists, nine steals while shooting 61.2 percent.
- Davon Lee and Mike Millsip each added eight points.
- Shamir Johnson led the game with six assists in 18 minutes on the floor. His six dimes ties a season-best mark of assists for a Warrior this season with Justin Paz (D'Youville), Pepin (Seton Hill) and McGlone (California, Pa.).
- The Warriors tied their season-high with 17 steals against The Rock (also done against Pitt-Johnstown). ESU turned the 17 steals into 24 points.
- ESU also held advantages in assists (23-8), turnovers (22-13), points in the paint (52-44), bench points (27-17), fastbreak points (34-11) and second-chance points (13-10).
- SRU also totaled three double-figure scorers, including Khalid Gates (17 pts., 9reb.), Lashon Lindsey (15 pts., 8 reb., 7-7 FG) and Amante Britt (11 pts.).
- SRU struggled shooting from the field, shooting 41.2 percent and made just 4-of-19 from 3-point land and converted less than half of its free throw attempts (6-13). ESU countered with an even 50 percent mark from the floor, made 8-of-24 from 3-point land and recovered from a slow start from the stripe to finish 15-23 from the line.
- The Warriors avenge its 81-73 loss at Slippery Rock last season and record its 14th win over its past 17 games against The Rock dating back to 2000. ESU now leads the all-time series by a mark of 18-5.
- Pepin and McAliley each have 197 points on the season (average of 17.9 ppg), with Pepin adding nearly 10 rebounds per contest (109 in 11 games) and McAliley shooting 62.2 percent from the floor.
How It Happened
- Slippery Rock was the first on the scoreboard, as The Rock took additional leads at 6-4, 13-12 and 16-13 after Lindsey drained a 3-pointer at the 11:50 mark. McAliley posted back-to-back layups to give the Warriors the lead for good, as the Warriors grew its advantage to nine points at 27-18 following a 14-2 sprint.
- Holding a 35-27 lead with 3:39 left in the opening half, the Warriors took control by closing the first half on a 14-8 sprint, heading into the Koehler Fieldhouse locker room leading The Rock by a score of 49-33.
- ESU held a double-digit lead of at least 12 points during the final 20 minutes of play. The Rock used a 13-8 run to slice the deficit to a second-half low at 66-54, but the Warriors immediately responded with a quick 12-2 spree to increase its lead back to 22 points.
- The relentless Warriors closed the game with a 15-8 run, increasing its lead to a game-high 27 points at the final score of 93-66 following a David Duda Jr. layup.
Up Next
ESU opens the PSAC East slate on Wednesday at Shippensburg (6-5, 4-1 PSAC). Game time at Heiges Field House is set for 8:00 p.m.
