ERIE, PA – IUP's Devante Chance (Philadelphia, Pa. /Electrical & Technology Charter) reached 1000 career points but his night was ruined as the 16th-ranked Crimson Hawks fell to Mercyhurst 58-55 on Wednesday night in Erie.
 
The loss drops the Crimson Hawks from first place in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Western Division, as they fall to 14-4 in the league. Gannon retakes control in the division at 15-4 while Mercyhurst trails IUP with a 14-5 mark.
 
Chance hit 1,000 points on the dot when he nailed a jumper to give IUP an 18-15 lead with 8:47 to go in the first half. He went on to finish with 15 points and three assists in 40 minutes of action. He became the 29th player in program history to reach the 1000-point milestone.
 
The senior guard also became just the fourth player in IUP men's basketball history with 1000 points and 400 assists, joining Ashton Smith (1635, 456), Eddie Peterson (1621, 425) and Yancey Taylor (1257, 406). Chance ends Wednesday night with career totals of 1,011 points and 436 assists.
 
Chance's third assist of the night came on IUP's final bucket, finding Daddy Ugbede (Gardena, Calif./Serra) for a layup as the Crimson Hawks tied the game at 55-55 with 24 seconds to play.
 
The Lakers answered with Jean Onana hitting a three-pointer with two seconds remaining as Mercyhurst retook the lead. Jeremy Jeffers (Wilson, N.C./Greenfield School) had one last heave for IUP but his three-pointer was off the mark and Mercyhurst came away with the upset victory.
 
Onana led the Lakers with 11 points, the only Mercyhurst player score in double-figures.
 
Mercyhurst's victory can be attributed in large part to how both teams performed from three-point range. The Lakers finished 10-of-20 from beyond the arc while the Crimson Hawks went just 4-of-19.
 
Five of Mercyhurst's eight field goals in the first half were from three-point range as the Crimson Hawks held a slim 26-25 lead heading into the locker room.
 
IUP fell behind early in the second half with the Lakers starting things with a 10-1 run. The Crimson Hawks chipped at that lead, cutting the Lakers deficit to three at 37-34 and again at 42-39. They finally retook the lead at 49-47 when Shawn Dyer (Marion, Ohio/Marion Harding) nailed a three-pointer with 4:19 to play.
 
Onana later hit a three-pointer to give Mercyhurst a 54-51 lead with 1:23 to play, but Dyer converted a pair of free throws on the other end to make it a one-point game with just over a minute left. Ugbede's game tying layup came after Mercyhurst split a pair of free throws with 44 seconds on the clock.
 
Dyer was the game's leading scorer with 23 points, making 7-of-14 from the field and 7-of-7 tries from the foul line in 39 minutes.
 
The Crimson Hawks went 10-of-11 from the foul line in the final 20 minutes, but went cold from the field, going just 8-of-24 in the second half.
 
IUP will remain on the road for its second of the week, heading back to the north to face Edinboro on Saturday afternoon.