INDIANA, Pa. – The second-ranked and shorthanded IUP men's basketball team took care of business behind an outstanding outing from
Dave Morris with a 99-54 win against NCAA DIII Penn State Altoona on Sunday afternoon at the KCAC.
IUP (8-0) eventually settled in around the midway point of the opening half, pushing its lead to double figures and not looking back. Sunday's game was an exhibition for Penn State Altoona and did not count toward its overall record.
Morris dazzled with a career-high 31 points on 10-of-16 shooting, adding four rebounds, four steals and two assists. Morris was one of four players in double figures for the Hawks, who held out starters
Shawndale Jones and
Ethan Porterfield for extra rest.
Tomiwa Sulaiman dropped in 20 points with eight rebounds, while
Dallis Dillard notched his first collegiate double-double behind 15 points and 11 rebounds. The ultra-athletic
Damir Brooks added 13 points and five boards in 15 minutes, playing through foul trouble. IUP shot 59.6% from the floor, including 72% (18-25) in the second half.
Robbie Hicks logged 13 points for the Lions with Mason Bush adding 10. IUP, which has been ranked in the top five 64 weeks in program history, won its 19th consecutive regular season contest dating back to 2021-22.
The Lions trailed by just three about five minutes in before the Hawks took control. Morris canned a triple, jumpstarting a 10-4 spurt that included another Morris trey and a dunk from Sulaiman off a feed from Morris.
Consecutive buckets from Dillard stretched the IUP lead to 19 at 30-11 with 9:38 remaining in the first half. Brooks finished an and-one layup from Dillard for a 22-point lead, which later swelled to 25 at two points over the remainder of the first half.
A baseline dunk from Brooks opened the second half with authority for IUP. PSA battled back to within 16 before IUP responded back. A pair of baskets from
Callum MacNamara lifted IUP ahead by 20 at 58-38.
Morris canned his fourth three-point basket of the evening for a 27-point advantage as IUP remained ahead comfortably. Morris' final three of the night expanded the lead to 94-50, capping off his first 30-point outing of his career. It marked the 45th time the consistent Morris has scored in double figures over 76 career games.
Jaheim Bethea added seven points and three assists off the bench for the Hawks.
Up Next
IUP welcomes Kutztown (December 18) and West Chester (December 19) for PSAC crossover action at the KCAC.
Follow
For up-to-date information, visit IUPAthletics.com and follow IUP Men's Basketball on Twitter @IUPCrimsonHawk and @IUP_MBB.
