ELON, N.C. – Sophomore guard Armoni Foster scored a game-high 28 points and senior forward Tommy Demogerontas had a double-double but the 11th-ranked Crimson Hawks couldn't finish off Division I Elon in a 79-71 overtime loss Wednesday night at the Schar Center.
 
Foster did most of his damage in the second half with 19 points on the strength of five 3-pointers, as he helped the Crimson Hawks come back from a 30-25 halftime deficit. He finished 7-of-20 from the field, including 6-of-13 from long range, and went 8-of-9 from the foul line in 41 minutes.
 
IUP used a 10-4 run to start the second half with an inside bucket from Chucky Humphries giving the Crimson Hawks a 35-34 lead less than four minutes in.
 
Elon fought back to take a 45-41 lead six minutes later but IUP again came back with Foster drilling a 3 to tie the game at 47-47 heading into the under-8 media timeout.
 
The game featured three more ties and four lead changes as Foster gave IUP a 62-58 lead on a 3-pointer with 54 seconds left. Elon answered with a trey and after two scoreless possessions by the Crimson Hawks, the Phoenix took a 65-62 lead with four straight free throws.
 
On IUP's final possession of regulation, Malik Miller hit a step-back 3-pointer with 1.2 seconds left to tie the score and help send the game to overtime.
 
The IUP offense didn't find the same spark it had in the second half, shooting just 2-of-9 while Elon made 3-of-6 and 6-of-7 from the foul line to clinch the win.
 
Demogerontas, a transfer from Northern Illinois, finished with 10 points and a team-high 10 rebounds in 32 minutes. Miller scored nine points with three 3-pointers, junior transfer Shawndale Jones had eight points and seven rebounds and Humphries added eight points and six boards.
 
IUP shot 34 percent (24-of-70) from the floor and went 14-of-20 from the foul line. Elon owned a +11 rebounding edge, shot 40 percent from the field and went 26-of-31 from the charity stripe.
 
Up next
The Crimson Hawks open their 2019-20 season next weekend with the IRMC/Hilton Garden Inn Classic at the Kovalchick Convention & Athletic Complex. IUP will play West Virginia Wesleyan Dec. 8 at 7 p.m. and Concord Dec. 9 at 6 p.m.
 
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