INDIANA, Pa. – The IUP men's basketball team hovered around striking distance throughout the night but could not get over the top, falling 73-65 to Walsh on Thursday night at the KCAC.
Walsh (2-0) outscored IUP (1-1) by a 23-0 margin in bench points and led for around 34 minutes in the contest.
Dallis Dillard posted a game-high 20 points for IUP, adding a pair of assists with a strong first half for the Crimson Hawks.
Jaylen Stewart had 16 points in the second half for IUP with
Ethan Porterfield and
Garvin Clarke notching 13 points apiece. Kobe Mitchell paced Walsh on 7-of-12 shooting with Garrison Keeslar adding 17 points and five assists. Nic Smith poured in 14 points (6-7 FG) off the bench as IUP struggled to guard the interior at times.
After making 15 treys in the opener, Walsh had just six on Thursday. However, a Mitchell three at the 15:27 mark handed Walsh a lead it did not relinquish against a young IUP squad.
IUP took a brief lead early in the first half but spent the majority of the opening 20 minutes looking to chip away at a deficit. Walsh shot 48.0% from the floor but was held in check from beyond the arc, while IUP got a spirited performance from Dillard in the half, posting 14 points (5-9 FG) with a rebound.
Both sides combined for just five field goals over the final 7:25 of the opening half as Walsh maintained a slim advantage. An 8-0 surge around the midway point of the half pushed Walsh to a 17-9 advantage, later posting its largest edge of the half at 20-11.
KJ Rhodes swiped a ball and fed a go-ahead pass to Dillard, who slammed the ball down in transition to provide IUP a semblance of momentum, trailing 22-18. After a scoring drought for both sides, IUP sliced its deficit to one point twice at 26-25 and 28-27 before the Cavaliers delivered at the foul line for a three-point advantage heading into the intermission.
Dillard charged ahead for a 35-34 lead at the 17:14 mark with the Cavaliers countering on the next possession up the floor. A 10-0 run pushed the Cavaliers ahead 46-37 in the second half and IUP could not get back within five the remainder of the night.
A driving score from Keeslar handed Walsh its largest lead of the night at 63-51 at the 6:09 mark. It was all part of a 60.7% shooting mark from the floor for Walsh in the second half as the Cavaliers avenged a loss to IUP from last season.
Up Next
IUP is idle until November 25 and November 26, hosting the 2023 IRMC Thanksgiving Classic at the KCAC.
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For up-to-date information, visit IUPAthletics.com and follow IUP men's basketball on Twitter @IUPCrimsonHawk and @IUP_MBB.
