SLIPPERY ROCK, Pa. – Senior forward
Jacobo Diaz scored 16 second half points, but IUP's furious comeback fell short as the third-ranked Crimson Hawks lost to Slippery Rock 74-69 Saturday afternoon at Morrow Field House.
It was the first loss of the season for the Crimson Hawks, who are now 14-1 overall and 7-1 in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC).
Diaz finished with game-highs of 29 points and 14 rebounds, his eighth double-double of the season.
After a first half dominated by Slippery Rock (10-5, 7-1 PSAC), the Crimson Hawks trailed 44-31 as they headed to the locker room. The Rock led for nearly all 20 minutes, outshooting IUP 53 percent to 33 percent.
It got worse for the Crimson Hawks before it got better as Slippery Rock extended its lead to 16 points at 49-33 early in the second half.
On the following possession, the comeback started with a 3-pointer from junior guard
Malik Miller. Diaz brought the deficit back to single digits less than two minutes later, first getting an offensive rebound tip-in and converted foul shot, before making another bucket on IUP's next possession.
The SRU lead extended back to 12 but the Crimson Hawks reeled off an 8-0 run in less than two minutes with Diaz getting buckets on three straight IUP possessions. He punctuated the run with a dunk that led into a media timeout as IUP trailed 55-51 with 11:20 left to play.
Miller made it a 59-57 game with a pair of free throws minutes later and Diaz did the same to keep the deficit at two points with 7:16 to play.
The Crimson Hawks continued to use the free throw line to stay in the game, as a foul shot by
Armoni Foster with 2:56 left made it a 1-point game at 66-65.
That's where the comeback ended as IUP scored on just one of its next five possessions, helping SRU go on an 8-1 run over 2:45 to clinch the win.
IUP outscored Slippery Rock 38-30 in the second half. The Crimson Hawks pressed defensively, forcing The Rock into 10 turnovers while they shot just 32 percent from the floor. IUP still shot just 36 percent from field and made one 3-pointer, but went 15-of-21 from the foul line.
Miller finished with 17 points and senior forward
Willem Brandwijk added 11 points and nine rebounds.
Notes
The Crimson Hawks are No. 3 in the NABC and D2SIDA Media Top 25 polls … The loss ended IUP's 14-game win streak, the fourth such streak under head coach
Joe Lombardi … It also ended the perfect start at 14 games, which matches the longest win streak to open a season under Lombardi (2013-14 started 14-0) … Lombardi is 23-7 lifetime against Slippery Rock, including 7-7 at Morrow Field House … It also ended IUP's four-game win streak against SRU … IUP is now 4-1 this season when trailing at the half.
Up next
The Crimson Hawks finish up their three-game road trip Wednesday at East Stroudsburg (10-4, 7-1 PSAC). It's the final PSAC cross-divisional game of the season for both teams. The Warriors ended a recent two-game losing streak with a n 83-65 win at Lock Haven Wednesday. Tipoff Wednesday is at 8 p.m.
Follow
For up-to-date game information, visit IUPAthletics.com and follow IUP Men's Basketball on Twitter @IUPCrimsonHawk and @IUP_MBB.
