• Box Score

LOCK HAVEN, Pa. (Feb. 16) – The California University of Pennsylvania men's basketball team clinched a berth in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Tournament with a 79-65 win at Lock Haven in divisional play on Saturday afternoon.

With the victory, the Vulcans improve to 10-13 overall with a 9-10 record in league play. With three games left in the regular season, Cal U is two games back of fourth place in the divisional standings. Meanwhile, Lock Haven falls to 5-17 this season behind a 3-16 mark in conference action.

Senior Quentin Harding (McKeesport, Pa./McKeesport) scored a career-high 26 points after shooting 9-of-13 from the field and five-of-five from the free-throw line. He also posted six rebounds and made a season-high three treys on Saturday. Harding has now scored at least 20 points twice in the last four games after previously not reaching the mark in two calendar years.

Junior Chris Williams (Philadelphia, Pa./Bishop McDevitt) and freshman Jake Jacubec (Struthers, Ohio/Struthers) both finished with 13 points after shooting a combined 10-of-11 from the floor. Williams also led the team with seven rebounds. Senior guard Keith Lowe (Columbus, Ohio/Centennial) added 10 points, six rebounds and three assists, while sophomore guard Tynell Fortune (Harlem, N.Y./Pocono Mountain West (Pa.)) tied his career high with seven assists off the bench.

Leading 15-9, Cal U posted an 11-2 run over nearly five minutes to take a 26-11 lead with 7:39 left in the first half. The Bald Eagles then scored seven-unanswered points before the Vulcans answered with an 11-0 run over four minutes to take a 40-22 lead in the final minute. Lock Haven scored a basket at the buzzer, as Cal U took a 40-24 lead at the halftime.

Early in the second half, the Vulcans mounted a 10-3 rally to take a 59-36 lead with 12:03 remaining. Lock Haven cut the deficit to 17 points, 61-44, before Cal U scored eight-unanswered points to stretch the lead to 69-44 with 8:07 left to play. The Bald Eagles later countered with an 8-0 run, but the Vulcans maintained a comfortable double-digit lead throughout the rest of the game.

Cal U posted its best shooting performance in nearly a decade, making 65.2 percent (30-of-46) from the field with a season-high 11 three-pointers (64.7 percent; 11-of-17). Meanwhile, Lock Haven shot 40.3 percent (25-of-62) from the floor and just 18.8 percent (3-of-16) from beyond the arc. The Vulcans out-rebounded the Bald Eagles by a 36-21 margin and collected 17 assists.

Sophomore guard Wali Hepburn led the Bald Eagles with 19 points and six assists, while junior Kasheef Festus added 18 points and five rebounds in the losing effort.

The Vulcans return to action on Wednesday, Feb. 20, when they host Slippery Rock at the Convocation Center, starting at 7:30 p.m.