The men’s basketball team continued their winning ways last Wednesday as a late run propelled the Raiders to an 83 – 69 win over PSAC East foe Lock Haven University.
The Raiders paced themselves throughout the night, maintaining control of the lead from the 15-minute mark of the first half until the end of the game. They did this despite turning the ball over 16 times.
That is not to say the game was never in doubt, though. After hopping out to a 14-point lead midway through the second half, the Bald Eagles went on a 14-2 run, narrowing the Raider lead to 3.
The game remained close, but Shippensburg countered the onslaught of the Bald Eagles with a 17-6 run of their own over the last five minutes.
Dustin Sleva checked in with a team-high 20 points and nine rebounds. Freshman Antonio Kellem continued his streak of scoring in double digits with 14 points and a career-high 10 rebounds.
Abe Massaley followed suit as well, finishing with 14 points of his own to go along with five rebounds. Massaley also had seven of the Raiders’ 18 assists.
Justin McCarthur finished with four assists and 12 points —10 of which came in the second half. Over the Raiders’ last six games, McCarther has scored double digits in the second half five times. The lone game he did not was in a close loss to Kutztown.
With the win, the Raiders remain within a half-game of East Stroudsburg and Bloomsburg for third place in the PSAC East. Currently, Shippensburg sits in fifth place, just one seed away from hosting a home playoff game.
The men’s team will be in action again this Wednesday following up the ladies at 8 p.m. at Heiges Field House. Also on the slate for the evening will be a Make-A-Wish reveal at half time of the women’s game. SU students can gain free admission to the event with their student ID and the first 500 fans will receive a T-shirt.
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