CALIFORNIA (Feb. 12) – Sophomore
Jermaine Hall, Jr. (Baltimore, Md./Severn School) posted a double-double with 18 points and 10 rebounds on Wednesday night, as the California University of Pennsylvania men's basketball team suffered a 79-70 loss against No. 9 IUP in Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) West action at the Convocation Center.
With the loss, the Vulcans drop back-to-back games for only the second time this season and fall to 15-8 overall behind an 11-6 record in conference play. Cal U remains in fourth place in the divisional standings with only five games left in the regular season. Meanwhile, the Crimson Hawks now hold a three-game lead in the PSAC West standings and improve to 20-2 this season with a 15-2 mark in league action.
Hall posted his second double-double of the season after tallying 18 points on 6-of-10 attempts with three treys. The Maryland native added 10 rebounds and two assists while playing 34 minutes versus IUP. Hall is averaging 20.0 points and 7.7 rebounds over the last three games, while shooting 53.8 percent from the field with 13 three-pointers.
Junior
Brent Pegram (Upper Marlboro, Md./Dr. Henry A. Wise Jr.) finished with 18 points, six rebounds, seven assists and three steals in 39 minutes of action. Sophomore
Zyan Collins (South Riding, Va./Freedom) totaled 13 points, three rebounds, two blocks and two steals in 37 minutes, while freshman
Luke House (Norristown, Pa./Archbishop John Carroll) registered 11 points, six rebounds and four assists in 33 minutes. Fellow freshman
Tim Smith, Jr. (Lakewood, Ohio/Lakewood) posted 10 points, five rebounds and one block in 34 minutes.
Both sides struggled from the field in the initial six minutes of the contest, the Vulcans held an 8-4 lead at the 13:58-mark behind a three-pointer from Hall. The Crimson Hawks answered with a 12-4 rally on a perfect five-of-five shooting to take a 16-12 advantage. The teams would trade baskets over the next five minutes before Cal U scored six-straight points to reclaim the lead at 32-31 with 3:58 left in the first half. IUP then scored 11 of the final 17 points of the half to take a 42-38 lead into the break.
The Vulcans started the second half with a 10-2 run over a four-plus minute stretch to grab a 48-44 advantage. The Crimson Hawks responded by making their next five shots to tie the contest at 56-56, but Cal U countered with five-unanswered points to hold a 61-56 advantage with 10:07 left. IUP would reclaim the lead at 65-61 after a 9-0 run, as the Vulcans were held scoreless for over three minutes. Cal U cut the deficit to 65-64 at the 5:35-mark before the Crimson Hawks tallied eight of the next 11 points, 73-67. Both sides went scoreless for nearly three minutes before IUP claimed the win by making six-of-six from the free-throw line, 79-70.
Cal U finished the game shooting 41.8 percent (23-of-55) from the floor while converting 9-of-29 (31.0 percent) from beyond the arc. In comparison, IUP shot 44.1 percent (26-of-59) from the field and made 20-of-27 (74.1 percent) from the charity stripe. The Crimson Hawks finished with a 43-33 rebounding advantage and scored 19 points off turnovers, while the Vulcans totaled 16 second-chance points.
Sophomore Armoni Foster scored a game-high 24 points on 8-of-20 shooting on Wednesday night. He also tallied four rebounds, three assists and two blocks while playing all 40 minutes. Senior Chucky Humphries recorded a double-double with 10 points and 16 rebounds, plus three steals and one block, in 35 minutes. Freshman Ethan Porterfield finished with 14 points and six rebounds, while junior Shawndale Jones and sophomore Dave Morris each notched 13 points.
The Vulcans return to action on Saturday, Feb. 15, when they travel to face Edinboro in PSAC West action at 3 p.m.
