LHU Men’s Basketball clinches PSAC Tournament berth with thrilling victory over Shepherd

LOCK HAVEN– Facing foul trouble in the frontcourt, the Lock Haven men’s basketball team turned to a small-ball five lineup over the closing minutes and the group responded to lift the Bald Eagles to a thrilling 67-62 victory over Shepherd inside Thomas Fieldhouse on Saturday afternoon (Feb. 15).

With the victory, the Bald Eagles (13-11, 10-8 PSAC) have clinched a berth to the PSAC Championship Tournament and are currently seeded fifth with three games remaining.

The Haven clinched by taking down third-place Shepherd, who falls to 15-9 overall and 11-6 in conference play.

Senior Eli Washington led The Haven in scoring and finished with 14 points and three assists.

LaQuon Byrd was once again huge off the bench and finished with 13 points. Dyllon Scott played crucial minutes down the straight and added eight points and four rebounds.

Blake Deegan also made clutch plays in the closing minutes and finished with 12 points, four rebounds, two steals and a block. Kevin Coleman blocked a game-high three shots.

Lock Haven led 27-24 coming out of the break, but Shepherd opened the second half on a 7-2 run to take a 31-29 lead at the 17-minute mark.

However, Lock Haven regained control starting at the 14-minute mark when Deegan scored six of the teams eight points to put the Bald Eagles on top 45-40.

Lock Haven held a two-basket lead for the next nine minutes, but a 9-0 Shepherd run put the Rams back on top 58-54 with 3:12 to go.

Due to foul trouble the Bald Eagles were forced to go with a small lineup and the group responded by scoring eight unanswered points to retake the lead, 65-60, with 25 seconds on the clock.

In the first half, Lock Haven led for over 10 minutes and by as much as eight, but a late Shepherd run cut the Bald Eagles’ lead to 27-24 heading into the break. Lock Haven’s defense led the way in the first half, as the Bald Eagles held Shepherd to 30 percent from the floor, while forcing a half-high 10 turnovers.

Saturday was the men’s basketball program’s Senior Day and Lock Haven honored seniors Damon Gripp, Chris Vazquez, Eli Washington, Isaiah Stewart, Idris Ali and Bryson Scott prior to the game.

Next up for The Haven:

The Bald Eagles will hit the road and visit Millersville at 3 p.m. on Saturday (Feb. 22) for a PSAC contest.