CALIFORNIA (Jan. 7) – The California University of Pennsylvania men's basketball team held the highest scoring offense in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) to a season low in points on Wednesday night while earning a 72-63 win over defending-league champion East Stroudsburg at the Convocation Center in PSAC Crossover action.

With the victory, the Vulcans improve to 11-4 overall and extend their winning streak to four games. Cal U now stands at 7-3 in league play after posting a 5-1 mark in crossover action. Meanwhile, the Warriors fall to 8-5 this season and 7-3 in conference play.

Freshman forward Tony Richardson (Sterling, Va./Dominion) led the team and tied his season high with 14 points off the bench. He made six-of-seven attempts from the floor and collected six rebounds, two blocks and two steals in the victory.

Junior Jake Jacubec (Struthers, Ohio/Struthers) posted 11 points while shooting three-of-six from beyond the arc. Fellow juniors Khalil Jabbie (Alexandria, Va./Edison) and Richard Smith (Cleveland, Ohio/Lutheran East) both finished with 10 points against the Warriors. Smith registered his sixth double-double of the year after posting a game-high 10 rebounds (four offensive) and Jabbie totaled four rebounds, four assists and two steals on Wednesday.

East Stroudsburg, which averages 81.4 points per game, opened the game on a 9-2 run before Cal U mounted an 18-2 run to take a 20-11 lead with 7:27 left before halftime. During the eight-plus minute run, the trio of Jacubec, Smith and senior Arman Marks (Louisville, Ky./Eastern) combined for 13 points and the Warriors managed to make only 1-of-13 from the floor. The Vulcans later recorded a 13-6 run, including a span of nine-straight points, to stretch their first-half lead to as many as 14, 33-19, at the 3:16-mark and eventually took a 35-21 lead at halftime.

After the teams traded baskets early in the second half, the Warriors posted a 15-5 run behind a span of eight-unanswered points to reclaim the lead at 46-45 with 11:24 remaining. Cal U countered with a 14-4 rally over nearly six minutes, making six-of-nine shots from the field, to take a 61-53 lead on a jumper by freshman Daniel Sapp (Streetsboro, Ohio/Streetsboro) at the 4:13-mark. The Warriors cut the deficit to 66-61 with 1:34 left to play and later looked to cut the deficit to five points with less than 30 seconds left before Richardson recorded a block on a layup. Cal U sealed the victory by converting all six of their free-throws in the final 90 seconds.

Cal U finished the game shooting 46.7 percent (28-of-60) from the floor and 85.7 percent (12-of-14) from the free-throw line. In comparison, East Stroudsburg shot at a 41.0 percent clip (25-of-61) from the field and just 61.5 percent (8-of-13) from the charity stripe. The Vulcans held a dominating 45-28 rebounding advantage with 15 offensive rebounds, which led to 15 second-chance points. Meanwhile, East Stroudsburg scored 18 fastbreak points after forcing 20 turnovers.

Junior Jamal Nwaniemka led the Warriors after shooting 6-of-11 from the floor. Sophomore Rasheed Moore and senior Lamont Tillery both added 10 points and combined for 10 rebounds in the loss.

The Vulcans return to PSAC West play on Saturday, Jan. 10, when they host rival and No. 20 IUP at 5 p.m.