ROCKVILLE CENTRE, N.Y. – Holding a 36-34 lead at halftime, the East Stroudsburg University men's basketball team opened the second half on a 22-6 run, as the Warriors took control and downed Molloy, 79-62, on Wednesday night at Quealy Gymnasium.
The Warriors (3-0) remain undefeated through three contests this season, while the Lions (0-4) look to pick up their first win of the season on Saturday against Bloomfield.
Notables
- Lakeem McAliley led the balanced Warrior squad in points (19 pts.) and rebounds (8 reb.), recording a pair of blocks and three steals. McAliley knocked down 8-12 field goal attempts.
- Three Warriors recorded nine points, with Tyshawn Trail, Nasir Griffin and Shamir Johnson nearing double-figures in points. Trail added a team-best four steals, while Griffin totaled four rebounds and two steals.
- Justin Paz added eight points and stuffed the stat sheet with five rebounds, three assists, four blocks and a steal.
- Jalen Pichardo totaled seven points and six rebounds, while Carson Howard, Cam Young and Davon Lee all totaled six points in the balanced effort. Young brought down seven boards and two steals, while Pichardo totaled six rebounds.
- The Lions were led by Robby Matos (22 pts., 3 ast.), and Billy Reyes (14 pts., 4 reb.). Jalen Rosemond led the game with 10 rebounds.
- ESU struggled to shoot from the floor in the first half, knocking down just over 30 percent of its shots from the field (12-39 FG) and 26 percent from 3-point range (6-23). The Warrior offense found rhythm with a 43.3 percent mark from the field in the second half and knocked down 17-25 from the free throw line.
- ESU forced a season-high to date in turnovers (25), compiling 15 steals. Eight Warriors tallied at least one steal, while nine scored at least six points.
- The Warriors led the charge off the glass in rebounds (49-44), assists (14-8), blocks (7-4) and steals (15-8) and had less turnovers (25-16). Additionally, ESU led MU in points off turnovers (23-10), second chance points (14-12), bench points (34-9), points in the paint (42-34) and fast break points (13-7).
- With 19 points against Molloy, McAliley is nearing the 1,000 point club, now with 948 career points in 63 games as a Warrior.
How It Happened
- The Warriors began the first-half strong, building a 10-0 lead over the host Lions. Molloy slowly gained momentum, as the Lions used a 21-9 scoring run to grab its first lead of the game at 21-19 with 7:44 remaining.
- Over the final seven-plus minutes, ESU and Molloy exchanged points and leads, as the Lions took a game-high four-point lead at 28-24 and 30-26. The resilient Warriors refused to take a halftime deficit into the locker room, with ESU closing the first half on a 10-4 run, with Trail knocking down a 3-pointer with 1:49 left in the final points of the half. ESU grabbed a 36-34 lead at halftime.
- After the intermission, ESU jumped on MU with a 12-2 scoring run, with the Warriors knocking down five of its first seven attempts from the floor. Suddenly holding a 12-point lead, ESU did not let off the gas, as the 12-2 run turned into a 22-6 scoring spree, with ESU taking control of the matchup with a game-high, 18-point edge at 58-40 with 13:18 remaining in the second half. During the game-altering run, ESU knocked down 9-14 field goal attempts and recorded five steals, turning the ball over just once in the 6:20 of game clock. Seven Warriors scored during the stretch, with McAliley's eight points leading the way.
- Molloy trimmed the lead, but could not get within single digits of the Warriors the rest of the way. The Lions got as close as 11 points on three occasions in the second half, but ESU closed the game strong, not allowing a comeback. Holding a 73-61 lead with less than two minutes to go, the Warriors pressed the gas one last time, closing the game on a 6-0 run for the final s3core of 79-62.
Up Next
- ESU (3-0) is idle from game action until after the Thanksgiving holiday, heading to Buffalo to face the D'Youville Saints (0-3) on Sat., Nov. 25 at 3:00 p.m.
