Box Score

INDIANA, PA – Five Crimson Hawks finished the game in double figures, as the nation's seventh-ranked team defeated Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference East rival Shippensburg 77-46 Wednesday night.

Mathis Keita (Thionville, France/Insep), Brandon Norfleet (Virginia Beach, Va. /Landstown), Devante Chance (Philadelphia, Pa. /Electrical & Technology Charter), Jeremy Jeffers (Wilson, N.C./Greenfield School) and Devon Cottrell (Pittsburgh, Pa. /Gateway) all finished the game with at least 10 points, led by 19 from Keita. Jeffers also recorded his first double-double of the season, finishing with 10 points and 10 boards.

The Crimson Hawks got off to a slow start, with the game tied or Shippensburg holding the lead until the 14:42 minute mark. Jesse Bosnik (St. Marys/Elk County Catholic) put IUP in control, hitting his first three-pointer of the night, and giving the team the two-point advantage.

Things stayed close for the next few minutes as the Raiders were able to tie the game two more times, but were never able to regain the lead. IUP started to pull away with just over seven minutes left in the half, as Keita hit back-to-back buckets, followed by two free throws from Jeffers to give IUP its biggest lead of the game.

IUP headed into the break leading by 12, after Cottrell sunk a layup in the final seconds of play.

The Crimson Hawks dominated in the second half, never allowing Shippensburg to get within less than 11 points of their lead.

The Raiders' Jay Hardy hit a three-pointer with just over 10 minutes remaining to pull Shippensburg within 12, but IUP responded, going on a 14-5 run over the next five minutes, capped off by a dunk from Norfleet.

IUP kept the pressure on, up by 23 with 3:52 to go, as Keita, Norfleet and Bosnik hit their final baskets of the night.

Daniel Vigus (Catonsville, Md./Loyola Blakefield), Anthony Rocco (Northern Cambria, Pa. /Northern Cambria), C. Benjamin Mickens (Pittsburgh/Pittsburgh Allderdice) and Kalusha Ndoumbe Ngollo (Paris, France/Saint Andrews) relieved the starters in the final minutes of play. Mickens sunk a layup with just over a minute to go and Ngollo connected on one of two free throws to give IUP the 31-point victory.

The scoring was spread out for IUP, with Keita leading the way with 19 points, two rebounds, four assists and one steal. In his second game of the season, Norfleet finished with 11 points, five rebounds, six assists and two steals. Chance also recorded 11 points, adding three rebounds, five assists and two steals.

Jeffers finished the game with a double-double, tallying 10 points and grabbing 10 boards while adding one assist, two blocks and one steal. Cottrell also finished with 10 points, adding five rebounds and one steal.

The Crimson Hawks outshot the Raiders, connecting on 46.9 percent of their shots from the field, compared to just 35.7 percent for Shippensburg.

Entering the game having made just six three-pointers in the last three games, the Crimson Hawks sunk nine of their 25 attempts on the night, led by Chance and Keita with three apiece.

The conference's No. 1 scoring defense again showed its dominance, holding the Raiders to just 46 points, the lowest amount allowed all season and the sixth straight game in which opponents failed to score more than 60 points.

Before the game, IUP honored Shippensburg head coach Chris Fite, who spent seven seasons as an assistant coach with the Crimson Hawks under head coach Joe Lombardi. In his time with IUP, Fite was a part of teams that won three PSAC championships in four years and made five NCAA tournament appearances including a national title game berth in 2010. Fite was hired by the Raiders in June, becoming the 10th head coach in program history.

The Crimson Hawks will return to the court Saturday, continuing crossover play, heading to Kutztown for an afternoon matchup with the Golden Bears. With a record of 3-5, 1-2, Kutztown sits in sixth place in the PSAC East. They fell in their last contest at the hands of Pitt-Johnstown, 75-86. The Golden Bears head into the game giving up a conference-high 78.4 points per game. 

Tipoff from Kutztown is set for 3 p.m. from Keystone Arena in Kutztown, Pa.