WEST LIBERTY, W.Va. – The No. 7 seed East Stroudsburg University men's basketball team fell to No. 2 seed Gannon, 99-74, in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
The Warriors (21-9) trailed by just one point at the end of the first half, but the Golden Knights (26-6) pulled away with a dominant second-half performance.
Notables
Evan Morton capped off his freshman season with 17 points on 50% shooting, including 3-of-5 from beyond the arc, and added two steals.
Lakeem McAliley stuffed the stat sheet with 16 points, eight rebounds, five assists and four steals in his final game.
Nasir Griffin finished with 14 points and seven rebounds.
Cam Young reached double figures in his final game, contributing three rebounds and strong defense.
How it happened
ESU started fast, jumping out to a 21-9 lead midway through the first half. Gannon, however, chipped away at the deficit and closed the half on a 6-0 run to take a 38-37 lead into the break.
The Golden Knights took control early in the second half, building an 11-point lead at the 17:20 mark. The Warriors fought back, cutting the deficit to five with 16:47 remaining, but Gannon maintained its momentum and pulled away for the 99-74 victory.
Mike Ramos, McAliley and Young concluded their ESU careers, helping lead the Warriors to 88 wins, three consecutive 20-win seasons and two NCAA Tournament appearances.
McAliley leaves his mark in program history, ranking second in points (1979), third in steals (212), fourth in free throws (413), ninth in field goal percentage (55.8), seventh in blocks (97), 10th in rebounds (667), and 13th in three-point percentage (37.7). He is only one of two Warriors to earn All-PSAC East honors four times.
