EAST STROUDSBURG – The No. 18/19 East Stroudsburg University men's basketball team secured a PSAC East Regular Season Co-Championship and the PSAC East third seed in the PSAC Tournament with a 103-80 victory over Mansfield on Saturday afternoon at Koehler Fieldhouse.
The three-seed Warriors (24-4, 16-4) will meet the sixth-seed Mounties (8-19, 6-16 PSAC) again on Monday night at 7:00 p.m. inside Koehler Fieldhouse in a PSAC First Round matchup.
ESU, Lock Haven and Millersville all close the regular season with identical 18-4 conference records. The Bald Eagles hold tiebreakers over ESU and Millersville, to claim the top seed in the PSAC East, while Millersville holds a tiebreaker with a 2-2 record combined against Lock Haven and ESU to earn the second seed.
Tickets for Monday's game against the Mounties must be purchased online here:
bit.ly/42Y124J. No cash will be accepted on Monday for tickets at the door. For group tickets, contact ESU Coordinator of Athletic Business Operations Eric Rigg at erigg@esu.edu or by calling 570-422-3642. Admission is free for ESU or students attending a PSAC institution with an institution I.D.
Notables
- On Senior Day, ESU was led by seniors Shamir Johnson and Justin Paz, with Johnson matching his career high with 21 points. Johnson knocked down 6-8 from the field, 3-5 from long range and 6-7 from the stripe. He added a pair of assists and a steal in 19 minutes.
- Paz recorded 16 points, knocking down four triples on seven attempts. He distributed three assists, a block and two steals.
- Johnson, Paz and fellow senior Zion Darby combined for 39 points, six assists and four steals.
- Tyshawn Trail also registered 16 points, adding three assists and a steal.
- Jalen Pichardo reached double-digits in points for the first time in his freshman season. He went 6-6 from the stripe and led ESU with three steals.
- Carson Howard also reached double figures in scoring, with 10 points, making all four of his field goal attempts. He grabbed seven boards and tallied a block.
- Nasir Griffin neared a double-double with eight points and cleaned the glass with a team-high nine rebounds.
- Despite reaching the century mark with 103 total points, ESU's leading scorers Lakeem McAliley and Jaelen McGlone combined for eight points, as the duo were on the court for less than 17 minutes each.
- ESU's 103 points on the evening marks the ninth time the Warriors have reached the century mark this season, which is the second-most 100-point games in a single season, only trailing the 2017-18 (10) season.
- ESU's 24 wins are tied with the 2022-23 season are tied for the third-most wins in program history. ESU has only posted more victories in 2017-18 (27-6) and the 2013-14 (30-2) seasons. The Warriors also posted 24 wins in the 2009-10 (24-6) campaign.
How It Happened
- Despite the 23-point win, the contest went back-and-forth throughout the first half and the beginning of the second half With the score tied at 31-31, with 5:33 left, the Warriors closed the half on a 21-11 run to take a 52-42 lead into the locker room. Johnson keyed the run, with 10 points during the five-minute stretch.
- The Mounties opened the second-half strong with a 10-2 run to cut the deficit to just two points at 54-52 with 17:10 left in the second half. ESU took full control from that point on, with a 15-0 surge that expanded into a game-altering 29-7 run. The Warriors were red hot, knocking down 11-15 from the field and 5-6 from the stripe during the eight-and-a-half minute stretch. ESU held Mansfield to a 2-14 mark from the floor during the same stretch and turned the ball over five times. Leading 83-59, the Warriors extended its lead to a game-high 28 points at 103-75, before the Mounties scored the final five points for the final score of 103-80.
Up Next
- PSAC East three-seed ESU hosts sixth-seed Mansfield again on Monday at 7:00 p.m. inside Koehler Fieldhouse. The winner will head to second-seed Millersville on Wednesday.
