INDIANA, Pa. – Seniors Jacobo Diaz and Dante Lombardi each celebrated career milestones as they helped fourth-ranked IUP men's basketball to an 81-56 win over visiting California (Pa.) Wednesday night at the Kovalchick Complex.
 
Diaz became the 11th player in program history to score 1,500 career points and tied Joe DeLise (1950-51, 55-58) for 10th with 1,510 points. He's also the second active Division II player with at least 1,500 points and 900 rebounds in a career, tallying 977 boards.
 
Lombardi is just the second player at IUP to record 500 assists, moving up to 502 in his 106 games played with the Crimson Hawks. He's now one of seven active Division II players with at least 500 assists and is 10 helpers shy of tying the program record of 512 set by Devante Chance (2011-15).
 
The duo each put up double-doubles on the night as the Crimson Hawks won their third straight and improved to 17-1 overall and 10-1 in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC).
 
Diaz finished with 18 points and posted a season-high 15 rebounds. It was his fifth straight double-double, a PSAC-leading 11th of the season, and the 40th of his career.
 
Lombardi had 11 points and dished out 10 assists for his second straight double-double and third of the season.
 
The Crimson Hawks overcame a poor shooting first half (35 percent) by forcing Cal into eight turnovers and collecting 12 offensive rebounds.
 
Their largest lead of the half reached eight points twice as the Vulcans (6-11, 4-7 PSAC) used the 3-pointer to stick around and keep the game close. They cut IUP's lead to 28-26 with 4:20 to play in the half and trailed 37-34 with over a minute before the break before an and-one by senior forward Willem Brandwijk gave IUP a 6-point lead heading to the locker room.
 
The Crimson Hawks took control in the second half, quickly pushing their lead to double-digits and staying on top by a comfortable margin the rest of the way.  
 
IUP shot nearly 46 percent in the second half while forcing Cal into a 7-of-29 (24.1 percent) performance in the final 20 minutes.
 
The Crimson Hawks dominated the glass 48-to-31, totaling 25 points on 21 offensive rebounds. They also capitalized on Cal mistakes with 21 points off 16 turnovers.
 
Diaz and Lombardi were two of four players to score in double-figures, with junior guard Malik Miller adding 18 and senior forward Marko Krivacevic coming off the bench to score 12.
 
Notes
The Crimson Hawks are No. 4 in the NABC and No. 3 in the D2SIDA Media Top 25 polls … It was the 10th 80-point performance of the season for the Crimson Hawks, who are averaging 93.7 points in their last three games … IUP stretched its win streak over Cal to 10 games, with head coach Joe Lombardi improving to 21-6 lifetime against the Vulcans … Lombardi is just eight wins shy of 300 with a 292-98 career record … Diaz's 40 career double-doubles is third most among active Division II players … IUP last had a 17-1 record to start the 2008-09 season.
 
Up next
The Crimson Hawks go for four straight wins Saturday in a matchup at Clarion. The Golden Eagles are 4-11 overall and last in the PSAC West with a 2-9 league record. They've dropped four straight, including an 82-77 loss to Edinboro Wednesday. Tipoff is 3 p.m. at Clarion's Student Recreation Center.
 
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