SHIPPENSBURG, Pa. – Redshirt sophomore guard Armoni Foster scored a game-high 28 points to lead five players in double-figures as IUP men's basketball defeated East Stroudsburg 87-71 in the semifinals of the 2020 Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Championships Saturday at Shippensburg University.
 
The Crimson Hawks (27-2) will play for their second straight conference tournament title – and 11th all-time – Sunday against top-seed Shippensburg. Tipoff is 3 p.m.
 
Foster keyed an IUP offense that shot 50.0 percent from the field and went 24-of-28 from the foul line for its seventh straight 80-point performance.
 
The game was tight in the early going with IUP needing a 3-pointer by Malik Miller to tie things up at 12-12 after five minutes of play. That trey keyed a 10-0 run for the Crimson Hawks, as Chucky Humphries also drained a triple while Dave Morris scored a bucket and Miller added a pair of free throws during the run.
 
East Stroudsburg (20-9), which forced IUP into 19 turnovers, slowed the run and kept its deficit at single digits through most of the first half.
 
With its lead at six points, IUP received two buckets from Shawndale Jones and a pair of free throws by Humphries to get its lead to double-figures at 32-20 with 5:41 to play in the half.
 
IUP took advantage of 15 first half East Stroudsburg fouls to go 13-of-16 from the foul line.
 
The IUP lead mostly remained in double-figures, with two free throws by Jones with 1:15 to play giving the Hawks a 44-34 lead. The Warriors then finished the half on a run, scoring seven straight points as IUP clung to a 44-41 lead going to the locker room.
 
The Crimson Hawks opened the second half on an 8-2 run and later took a 10-point lead at 56-46 on a Humphries offensive rebound and putback. ESU managed to get its deficit back down to six points with 12:05 to play, but that's the closest the Warriors would get as IUP followed with an 8-0 run and led by double-figures the rest of the way.
 
Foster had two layup-and-ones on the run, then later hit a 3-pointer followed by a layup to score 11 of 13 IUP points over a 5:21 span. He scored seven points in the final three minutes to finish with 20 in the second half alone.
 
After a close first half, IUP outscored the Warriors 43-30 in the second half for the 16-point win. Although they turned it over 19 times, the Crimson Hawks forced ESU into 21 turnovers and a 38.3 shooting percentage.
 
Who stood out
Foster finished 6-of-14 from the field, made a pair of 3-pointers, and went 14-of-14 from the foul line. He added seven rebounds in 39 minutes.
 
It's his third straight game of 25-plus points, including a career-high 33 points in the PSAC quarterfinal win over Cal U.
 
A trio of Hawks scored 14 points apiece, including Miller, Morris and Humphries. Morris, who was injured in the second half and played just 26 minutes, went 6-of-8 from the field, grabbed five rebounds and had five steals.
 
Humphries had five rebounds and three blocks and Miller added six rebounds and four assists in 29 minutes.
 
Jones came off the bench to score 10 points and Ethan Porterfield had seven points, eight boards and four blocks.
 
Notes
The Crimson Hawks entered the game ranked No. 7 in the NABC Top 25 and No. 6 in the D2SIDA Media Top 25 polls … IUP is also No. 1 in the NCAA Division II Atlantic Region rankings … That was IUP's second win over ESU this year, defeating the Warriors 80-56 at the Kovalchick Complex on November 24 … IUP is now 13-7 in PSAC semifinal games … IUP head coach Joe Lombardi improved to 5-0 against ESU in the PSAC tournament … He's also 20-8 in PSAC tournament games.
 
Up next
The Crimson Hawks will take on Shippensburg (24-6) in the PSAC Championship game Sunday at 3 p.m. It's another rematch as the Raiders defeated IUP 69-66 at Heiges Field House on December 21.
 
Follow
For up-to-date game information, visit IUPAthletics.com and follow IUP Men's Basketball on Twitter @IUPCrimsonHawk and @IUP_MBB.