LOCK HAVEN, Pa. – Challenged into the second half, the IUP men's basketball program held off a final push from Lock Haven to finish out a 68-63 victory on Saturday afternoon at Thomas Field House.
Leading most of the way, IUP (4-3, 2-0) answered back after surrendering the lead in the second half. The Hawks finished 43.5% from the floor with another tough afternoon at the foul line.
Ethan Porterfield secured a double-double with 16 points and 11 rebounds with
Garvin Clarke posting 15 points and four assists.
Dallis Dillard just missed a double-double with 13 points (5-10 FG) with nine rebounds, three assists, one steal and one block.
The Hawks held a big margin on the glass once again (42-33), picking up 12 offensive boards on the night. Down by 10 at the half, a much-improved Lock Haven squad took a slim lead in the second half. Turning the ball over just six times in the game, the Bald Eagles received 18 points apiece from Collin Jones and Justice Shoats.
Clarke canned a long three for a 6-4 advantage early in the opening half. The Hawks expanded its margin to six points at 10-4, shooting 50% from the floor ahead of the opening media timeout of the afternoon. Five of IUP's initial six field goals came from beyond the arc, including one from
Josh Petteno for a 16-5 edge.
Lock Haven did not wither despite IUP using a big run and maintaining a double figure advantage. Out of the media timeout, Porterfield splashed home a three from the left wing for a 30-18 edge, part of a strong first half for the senior who left the game with a lower body injury earlier in the contest.
IUP cooled off a touch as the half progressed with the lead hovering around 10 points after the final media timeout of the opening stanza. Brook's layup with 4:40 left in the first handed IUP its largest lead of the day at 32-18. Lock Haven slowly climbed back into the game in the second half, taking a slim lead at 51-50 on a bucket from Jones.
IUP pushed its lead back to five with layups from Dillard and
Jordan Lambert with under eight minutes remaining in the contest. The Hawks had an answer for each Lock Haven run, a similar story to Friday's win at Shippensburg.
Lambert posted five points in 11 minutes for IUP, providing the Hawks with some quality minutes off the bench. After two missed foul shots from Dillard, Brooks tipped out a big offensive rebound with four fouls, eventually leading to a timely triple from Lambert at the 4:07 mark for a 61-55 advantage. IUP slowed the pace with Lock Haven continuing to chip away at 63-59 with the clock ticking down under one minute top play.
Off Porterfield's 11th rebound of the day, Clarke converted a long two for a 64-59 edge. IUP closed out the victory with contributions from throughout the lineup.
Up Next
IUP returns home to continue PSAC crossover play on December 18 against Mansfield and December 19 against Bloomsburg from the KCAC.
Follow
For up-to-date information, visit IUPAthletics.com and follow IUP men's basketball on Twitter @IUPCrimsonHawk and @IUP_MBB.
