Box Score

INDIANA, PA - The IUP men's basketball team claimed their third Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) title in four years Saturday evening with a 52-46 win over rival Slippery Rock at the Kovalchick Complex.

Josh Wiegand (Whiteford, MD/John Carroll) led the way for the Crimson Hawks with 15 points and six rebounds, while Mathis Keita (Thionville, France/Insep) tallied 10 points, five boards and three assists. Keita was named the 2013 PSAC Tournament Most Valuable Player after finishing the weekend with 34 points, nine rebounds and 11 assists.

The action heated up midway through the second half as the Crimson Hawks would build a 39-22 lead with 11:08 remaining before Slippery Rock would mount a comeback.

Starting with a pair of free throws by Darious Clark, The Rock would rip off a 12-2 run over the span of 3:49 to cut their deficit to 41-34 with 7:01 remaining. IUP followed with a jumper by Devon Cottrell (Pittsburgh, Pa. /Gateway) to get the lead back to nine but layups by Tabari Perry and Devin Taylor closed the gap to four at 45-41 with just 2:27 on the clock.

Facing a loud road crowd and the momentum of Slippery Rock, the Crimson Hawks responded on the very next possession with a layup and free throw by Wiegand as IUP aimed to take control of the final precious moments.

A missed three-point try on the other end by The Rock turned into a layup by Scooter Renkin (Midlothian, VA/Blue Ridge) as the Crimson Hawks took a 50-41 lead with 57 seconds left on the clock.

Slippery Rock came right back as former IUP standout Gerald Brooks drained a three from the right wing to make it a six-point game rolling into the final 49 seconds. Keita would head to the line after a foul but his miss on a one-and-one would bounce off, giving The Rock a chance with under 30 to play.

After tough defense by IUP forced Slippery Rock to waste too much time, a three by Clark and a missed jumper by Aubin Reeves gave way to a Crimson Hawks defensive board with under 14 seconds to go. Missed free throws by Anthony Wells (Cleveland, OH/Shaker Heights) gave the Rock one last shot as Reeves converted a layup with 2.6 seconds on the clock to make it a 50-46 game.

But that bucket would be too little too late for Slippery Rock as Wells sunk both free throws on the other end, sealing the win and IUP's ninth conference crown.

IUP shot just 36.5 percent (19-of-52) from the floor but held The Rock to a 28.8 percentage (15-of-62), going just 4-of-16 from three-point range. Both teams did keep control of the ball as The Rock turned it over nine times and IUP eight times.

Taylor led the way for Slippery Rock with 14 points and six rebounds while Perry added 10 in the scoring column.

Wells was the only other IUP player in double-figures with 10 points, adding five rebounds and three assists. Keita followed up his sensational Friday night with nine points, eight rebounds and three assists in 35 minutes. Wiegand finished 5-of-12 from the field and more importantly 5-of-5 from the foul line in 27 minutes of work.

Renkin added seven points and five rebounds while Devante Chance (Philadelphia, Pa. /Electrical & Technology Charter) scored five with two steals and Marcel Souberbielle (Montevideo, Uruguay/Uruguayan American School) had four points with five rebounds in limited minutes.

It was a defensive struggle in the first half with no team leading by more than four until the Crimson Hawks took a 16-11 lead with 5:38 remaining before the break. A three-pointer by Renkin at the 1:55 mark would be the final points of the half as they went into the locker room with a 22-16 lead.

This was also head coach Joe Lombardi's third PSAC championship in the last four years and in seven seasons overall at the helm. Under Lombardi the Crimson Hawks have reached the 20-win plateau five straight years, winning 128 games in the last five seasons.

IUP last won the conference tournament in 2011, defeating Slippery Rock 82-75. An 84-73 victory over Kutztown in 2010 was Lombardi's first title at IUP as he led the Crimson Hawks to a national title game appearance.

The conference title gives IUP an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament, set to start next weekend.

The Crimson Hawks will now await word from the NCAA on their tournament placement. West Liberty has all but locked up the top seed in the Atlantic Region while IUP was slotted fourth prior to its tournament wins over Edinboro, West Chester and Slippery Rock.

The NCAA tournament field of 64 will be announced on Sunday, March 10 at 10:30 p.m. on NCAA.com.