LHU Men’s Basketball takes nationally-ranked Gannon to the wire, falls 89-84
LOCK HAVEN – The Lock Haven men’s basketball team gave Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Western Division power and nationally-ranked Gannon all they could handle, but the No. 17 Golden Knights escaped Thomas Fieldhouse with an 89-84 victory on Saturday afternoon (Dec. 21).
Despite facing a constant full-court press for the full 40 minutes against one of the top defenses in NCAA DII, The Haven shot a game-high 54 percent from the floor, including a red-hot 60 percent (15-of-25) in the first half to lead at the break, 42-41.
The Bald Eagles extended its lead to as much as 12, which was the largest of the game, but Gannon began to turn defense into offense to flip the script in the second half. The Golden Knights forced a game-high 19 turnovers, while only committing seven.
Gannon built a 77-69 advantage with 5:44 to go, but the Bald Eagles responded with an 8-0 run to trim the deficit to one with just under four minutes remaining.
The Bald Eagles knotted the score two more times over the final two minutes, but Gannon closed out the victory by going 6-of-6 at the charity stripe.
Lock Haven shot a scorching 53 percent (7-of-13) from deep in the first half, but cooled off to 22 percent in the second (2-of-9).
Both teams got to the free throw line 26 times, with Gannon holding a slight 18-17 advantage in makes.
With the result, the Bald Eagles move to 5-6 overall and wrap up PSAC East vs. West crossover play with a 2-3 record. The Golden Knights improve to 10-2 overall and a perfect 6-0 in PSAC play.
Isaiah Stewart led The Haven in scoring and knocked down three trifectas to finish with a team-high 15 points.
Eli Washington caught fire in the second half and totaled 14 points on an efficient 6-of-9 mark from the field. Mike Knouse dished out a team-high four assists.
LaQuan Byrd continues to provide a huge spark off the bench and led the second unit with 12 points and two steals. Kevin Coleman added nine points, ten rebounds and a pair of blocks.
NEXT UP
The Bald Eagles remain home and will host Kutztown in their PSAC Eastern Division opener on Friday (Jan. 3) at 7:30 p.m. inside Thomas Fieldhouse.
