EDINBORO, Pa. – Dante Lombardi (Indiana, Pa./The Kiski School) hit the game-winning 3-pointer with 1.8 seconds left to cap off IUP's come-from-behind 70-67 victory over Edinboro Saturday afternoon.
 
Edinboro tied the game at 67-67 with six seconds left, when Jaymon Mason converted one of his two foul shot attempts. The ensuing inbound pass quickly moved across midcourt and Lombardi drained the three from the left wing to give IUP the victory.
 
Lombardi finished with 15 points, including 13 in the second half. He went 3-of-8 from 3-point range.
 
The Crimson Hawks improved to 12-5 overall and stayed on top of the Western Division in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) with an 8-2 league record.
 
To get the win, IUP had to rally from a 13-point first half deficit as Edinboro (10-5, 7-4) built a 27-14 lead at the 7:55 mark.
 
That lead for the Fighting Scots quickly diminished, as IUP reeled off 11 straight points capped by a pair of foul shots from Malik Miller (Farrell, Pa./Farrell) to make it a 27-25 game. Miller came off the bench to join Lombardi with a team-high 15 points, going 4-of-6 from the field and 6-of-8 from the charity stripe.
 
Edinboro went back on top by eight and eventually took a 35-32 lead into the locker room.
 
The Crimson Hawks opened the second half with another run, scoring 12 of the first 14 points to take a 44-37 lead. Edinboro chipped away at that lead, but a pair of 3-pointers off the right hand of Lombardi kept IUP out in front by eight with just over four minutes to go.
 
That lead did not last long as Edinboro went on a 9-0 run to take a 61-60 lead with just over two minutes left. The teams exchanged the lead over the next five possessions, with a layup-and-one by Anthony Glover, Jr. (Toledo, Ohio/St. John's Jesuit) to give IUP a 67-66 lead with 15 seconds left to play and led to Mason's tying foul shot.
 
In addition to Lombardi's heroics, Jacobo Diaz (Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain/CBA Gran Canaria) notched his eighth double-double of the year with 13 points and 15 rebounds in the full 40 minutes. Glover with 13 points and Willem Brandwijk (Voorburg, The Netherlands/Holderness School (NH)) with 12 points also reached double-figures in scoring.
 
The Crimson Hawks won despite fighting foul trouble in the second half. Both Miller and Ayron Hutton (Virginia Beach, Va./Cape Henry) fouled out while Glover and sixth-man Blake Danielak (Georgetown, Tex./Liberty Hill) committed four fouls each. Edinboro converted IUP's 22 total fouls into a 23-of-27 effort from the foul line.
 
IUP limited the hot-shooting Fighting Scots to just six 3-pointers on 26 attempts, including a 1-of-10 effort in the second half.
 
IUP's dominance over Edinboro
The Crimson Hawks have won 18 of their last 19 meetings with Edinboro dating back to the 2008-09 season. IUP's only loss during that time was a 79-77 overtime defeat at Edinboro's McComb Fieldhouse during the 2014-15 season.
 
Close calls
This is the third straight game and fourth time in the last five games that IUP has played in a five-point game. The Crimson Hawks are 3-1 in those games, including wins over Edinboro, Slippery Rock (89-85) and Pitt-Johnstown (81-76).
 
Up next
The Crimson Hawks are on the road again next Wednesday, traveling to California (Pa.) to face the Vulcans (8-9, 4-7). Tipoff is 7:30 p.m.
 
Follow
For up-to-date game information, visit www.IUPAthletics.com and follow IUP Men's Basketball on Twitter @IUPCrimsonHawk and @IUP_MBB.