INDIANA, Pa. - Freshman forward Tomiwa Sulaiman posted a double-double to help lead the IUP men's basketball team to a 52-44 win over Shippensburg in the semifinals of the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) tournament Saturday afternoon at the Kovalchick Complex. 

The Crimson Hawks (28-2) will play for their third straight conference tournament title - and 12th all-time - Sunday against Eastern Division top-seed Millersville. Tipoff is 3 p.m. at the KCAC. Millersville advanced with a 59-53 win over Mercyhurst in Saturday's first semi. 

The 44 points by Shippensburg were the fewest for the Raiders since a 59-44 loss to Bloomsburg on Jan. 27, 2010 (327 games).

How it happened
The Crimson Hawks had the home crowd and the momentum early, scoring the game's first seven points with Sulaiman contributing a pair of buckets in the lane. Shippensburg (21-9) came back to tie the game at 9-9 but IUP rallied for an 8-0 run, with junior guard Dave Morris and senior forward Tommy Demogerontas each knocking down 3-pointers to give the Hawks a 17-9 lead with 7:23 to play in the first half. 

Neither team shot well in the first half as they went a combined 17-of-65 (26.2 pct.) from the field. 

Again the Raiders came back, going on a 10-0 run to take their first lead of the game at 19-17 after a layup-and-one by Indiana native Carlos Carter. Demogerontas later gave IUP a 22-19 lead on his second 3-pointer before the Hawks took a 22-21 lead into the break.

Although IUP shot better in the second half, the game remained low-scoring as the Hawks grabbed a 31-27 lead on a 3-pointer by sophomore forward Ethan Porterfield with 13:15 left. IUP went up 37-30 on a Morris 3-pointer and then 45-37 when junior guard Armoni Foster drilled one from deep with 4:55 to play. 

IUP went into the minutes with momentum until the Raiders' Rashon Johnson drilled a 3-pointer with 2:33 left to cut the Hawks' lead to 46-42. After several scoreless possessions, Carter was fouled and scored a pair at the foul line as IUP clung to a 46-44 lead with 1:00 on the clock.

Foster converted a driving layup on the ensuing possession and after a missed 3-pointer by Shippensburg, Porterfield knocked down a pair of free throws to put IUP on top 50-44 with 31 seconds left, essentially icing the game to put IUP in the championship game.

IUP shot 42.9 percent (9-of-21) from the field in the second half, including 4-of-7 from 3-point range. They also went 8-of-10 from the foul line.

For the game the Crimson Hawks outrebounded Shippensburg 50-to-35, including 18 offensive boards. IUP overcame 19 turnovers that led to 17 Shippensburg points. 

Who stood out
Sulaiman finished with 10 points and 13 rebounds in just 24 minutes. It was his second double-double of the season and a season-high in rebounds. 

Foster was the game's high-scorer with 12 points, adding five assists and steals.

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 avenged its 72-60 regular season loss to Shippensburg at the KCAC back in December ... IUP is now 14-7 in PSAC semifinal games ... IUP will be making its 16 PSAC championship game appearance ... IUP head coach Joe Lombardi improved to 23-8 all-time in the PSAC tournament ... This was IUP's 13th straight victory ... IUP is now 17-1 at home this year and 35-1 since the start of the 2019-20 season. 
 
Up next
The Crimson Hawks will take on Millersville (25-4) in the PSAC Championship game Sunday at 3 p.m. It's another rematch as IUp defeated the Marauders 81-58 at the KCAC back on December 14.
 
Follow
For up-to-date game information, visit IUPAthletics.com and follow IUP Men's Basketball on Twitter @IUPCrimsonHawk and @IUP_MBB.