INDIANA, Pa. - The third-ranked IUP men's basketball team withstood a second half comeback by Pitt-Johnstown to post a 72-64 win in their regular season finale Saturday afternoon at the Kovalchick Complex.
The win came on Senior Day as the Crimson Hawks celebrated the career of
Tommy Demogerontas prior to tipoff.
The PSAC Western Division champion Crimson Hawks wrapped up their regular season with 11 straight victories and a 26-2 overall record, including 20-2 in the league. Pitt-Johnstown heads into the postseason with a 20-8 record, including 16-6 in the conference.
How it happened
Sophomore forward
Ethan Porterfield dominated early with nine points on perfect shooting as the Crimson Hawks grabbed a 9-2 lead. After the Mountain Cats closed their deficit to 16-13, IUP responded with a 13-3 run with freshman guard
Dallis Dillard, junior guard
Dave Morris, and redshirt freshman guard
Bryce Radford each knocking down 3-pointers.
The Hawks doubled up UPJ at 38-19 with two minutes left in the half and took a 40-21 lead into the half after a Demogerontas dunk.
Another Demogerontas dunk gave the Hawks a 21-point lead at 54-32 with just under 12 minutes left in the second half. That's when UPJ started digging into that lead, going on a 14-2 run to make it a 56-46 game with seven minutes to go.
IUP's lead went under 10 at 58-50 with 5:30 left before both teams traded buckets. The Hawks used a Morris 3-pointer and Demogerontas layup on consecutive possessions to take a 13-point with 1:33 to play effectively wrapping up the game as they hit enough free throws in the final moments for the victory.
The Hawks held Pitt-Johnstown 14 points below its season average and finished witha 47-to-32 advantage on the glass. IUP scored 20 points off 13 UPJ turnovers.
Who stood out
Porterfield finished with 18 points and 11 rebounds in 34 minutes. It was his fourth double-double of the season.
Three more Hawks reached double-figures, including junior guard
Armoni Foster with 15 points and Demogerontas and Morris with 11 points each. Morris nearly tallied his second straight double-double with nine assists.
Notes
IUP entered the game ranked No. 3 in the NABC Coaches and No. 2 in the D2SIDA Media Top 25 polls ... IUP is also the No. 2 seed in the latest NCAA Atlantic Region rankings ... IUP wrapped up its third straight regular season of just two losses - the Hawks are 77-6 over the last three full seasons ... IUP head coach
Joe Lombardi is 18-4 lifetime against Pitt-Johnstown, including 10-1 in Indiana since the 2013-14 season ... IUP is 74-6 in PSAC West games since the 2016-17 season, including 38-2 at home ... IUP has won 33 of its last 34 home games ... Foster is 14th in IUP history with 1,462 career points.
Up next
As the division winner and No. 1 seed in the PSAC West, the Crimson Hawks receive a first round bye in next week's conference tournament. They will host the winner of first round matchup Cal U and Slippery Rock in the quarterfinals on Wednesday, March 2 at 7 p.m. at the Kovalchick Complex.
Follow
For up-to-date information, visit IUPAthletics.com and follow IUP Men's Basketball on Twitter @IUPCrimsonHawk and @IUP_MBB.
