INDIANA, Pa. (March 2) – The Vulcans were eliminated from the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Tournament in the quarterfinals on Wednesday night after dropping a 70-64 contest to top-seeded IUP, which entered play ranked No. 3 in the country.

With the loss, the California University of Pennsylvania men's basketball team falls to 21-9 this season and must now await a possible at-large berth to the NCAA Tournament on Sunday, March 6. Cal U has faced seven nationally-ranked teams this season, including IUP three times – which has been featured in the top 10 nationally in each meeting. Meanwhile, the Crimson Hawks extend their winning streak to 12 games and improve 27-2 overall, plus secured hosting rights for the semifinals and championship of the PSAC Tournament.

Sophomore Philip Alston (Columbus, Ohio/Westerville North) registered his league-leading 18th double-double with 20 points and 14 rebounds (five offensive) on Wednesday. He shot 7-of-17 from the floor with a pair of three-pointers and tied his career high of four blocks while playing 38 minutes. The PSAC leader in both scoring and rebounding this year, Alston is now tied with Eric Watson (1997-98) for fourth in single-season school history with 59 blocks. The Ohio native has averaged 20.3 points and 13.7 rebounds in the three meetings versus the Crimson Hawks this year.

Senior Brent Pegram (Upper Marlboro, Md./Dr. Henry A. Wise Jr.) added 19 points on 7-of-11 shooting on Wednesday. He also collected four rebounds, three assists and two steals while playing all 40 minutes. Pegram surpassed Ray Greene (1968-71), who was selected by the Boston Celtics in the NBA Draft, for seventh all-time in school history in school history with 1,615 points. The Maryland native also became only the third Cal U player (Kenney Toomer 1991-92; Dana Zajicek 1987-88) to eclipse 500 points in a season multiple times in a career.

Freshman Keith Palek III (Woodbine, N.J./St. Augustine Prep) finished with 13 points behind three-of-six from long range, two rebounds and two assists. Senior Preston Boswell (New Martinsville, W.Va./Magnolia) added seven points, four rebounds, two assists and two steals in the loss.

The Crimson Hawks raced out to a 19-6 lead with 12:18 left in the first half, as the Vulcans opened the game going just 2-of-13 from the field. However, Cal U responded by converting five of its next six shots to trim the deficit to 26-22 on a three-pointer by Palek at the 7:28-mark. The Vulcans scored seven of the final nine points in the first half, keeping the Crimson Hawks scoreless over the final 3:30, to enter the break trailing by a 35-34 margin. Cal U converted 7-of-14 from beyond the arc in the first half on Wednesday.

IUP mounted a 14-2 run behind four treys early in the second half to stretch the lead to 49-39 with 14:07 left to play. The Vulcans countered with nine-unanswered points to cut the deficit to 49-48 on a layup by Boswell at the 10:44-mark. IUP converted a three-point play with 4:42 remaining before back-to-back baskets by Alston made it a 61-60 contest with 3:13 left in the second half.  Following a three-pointer by the Crimson Hawks, Palek made a layup at the 1:54-mark before the Vulcans were held scoreless for nearly the remainder of the game. IUP scored on a pivotal tip-in with just over one minute left before closing out the game with four free-throws in the final 30 seconds.

The Vulcans finished the game shooting 38.7 percent (24-of-62) from the floor, including 8-of-22 from long range. Meanwhile, the Crimson Hawks made 43.5 percent (27-of-62) from the field behind 10-of-24 (41.7 percent) from three-point territory. IUP held a 40-32 rebounding advantage behind 15 offensive rebounds that led to 16 second-chance points, while Cal U forced 20 turnovers.

IUP sophomore Ethan Porterfield scored a game-high 22 points on 8-of-15 shooting, including three-of-five from beyond the arc, and added 12 rebounds (four offensive) in the victory. Freshman Tomiwa Sulaiman posted 10 points, seven rebounds (four offensive) and two steals, while classmate Dallis Dillard scored 14 points behind four-of-six from long range. PSAC West Athlete of the Year candidate Armoni Foster was held to a season-low seven points on just 2-of-10 shooting and committed four turnovers in the contest.

The selection show for the NCAA Tournament will be streamed lived on Sunday at approximately 10:30 p.m.