LOCK HAVEN, Pa. - Clinging to a one point lead with nine minutes left, the Crimson Hawks responded with a 12-0 run and outlasted Lock Haven down the stretch as the 10th-ranked IUP men's basketball team came away with a 79-72 win Saturday afternoon at the Thomas Fieldhouse.

The win was the third straight, and second of 2022, for the Crimson Hawks, who improved to 12-1 overall and 6-1 in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC). They stayed perfect on the road with a 5-0 record away from Indiana. 

How it happened
Lock Haven kept it close and low-scoring most of the first half as the Hawks held onto a single-digit lead. A 3-pointer by junior point guard Dave Morris jumpstarted a 10-2 IUP run as the Hawks grabbed a 26-15 lead with 5:51 before the half. 

The Hawks later went on a 10-0 run, with junior guard Armoni Foster and freshman guard Dallis Dillard each knocking down 3-pointers, to go on top 36-19 with 2:43 to play. The IUP lead would get up to as many as 18 points before taking a 41-27 advantage into the break.

Lock Haven chipped away at its deficit, going on an 18-6 run over a 5:11 time span to cut IUP's lead to 51-48 with still more than 13 minutes left. LHU's MarkAnthony Fidelis made it a 55-54 game when he hit a jumper with 8:54 to play. IUP's ensuing run was aided by a pair of 3-pointers by Morris, who totaled four treys on the afternoon, quickly making it a 67-54 game with over five minutes left. Morris went on a tear, scoring 10 of IUP's 12 points over a 2:18 span, finishing with 15 in the second half alone. 

LHU made it a game again with a 3-pointer by Fidelis to make it 75-72 with 41 seconds left, but fifth year forward Tommy Demogerontas made a layup on the other end and freshman guard Kyle Polce came up with a steal to seal IUP's win.

Who stood out
Foster led all scorers with 24 points, posting his third straight 20-point game. He also dished out seven assists in 40 minutes. Morris scored 20 points and tied a career-high with six steals. Sophomore forward Ethan Porterfield finished with 18 points, eight rebounds and two blocks, and Demogerontas had 10 points and seven boards. 

Notes
IUP entered the game ranked No. 10 in the NABC Coaches and No. 9 in the D2SIDA Media Top 25 polls ... Foster moved into 26th place in IUP history with 1,159 career points ... IUP head coach Joe Lombardi improved to 18-2 all-time against Lock Haven, including 18 straight wins dating back to the 2007-08 season ... IUP is 53-3 in January over the last six seasons, including 28-2 on the road ... IUP is 40-7 against PSAC East teams in the regular season since 2013-14. 

Up next
A huge top-10 matchup looms for the Crimson Hawks as they travel to Erie to take on No. 7 Mercyhurst (12-1, 6-1) Wednesday night. Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m.

Follow
For up-to-date information, visit IUPAthletics.com and follow IUP Men's Basketball on Twitter @IUPCrimsonHawk and @IUP_MBB.