Nice Ride
IUP ends PSAC road skid with big win at Seton Hill, 75-71
GREENSBURG — The IUP Crimson Hawks finally had a nice ride home.
IUP ended a series of agonizing road trips Wednesday night, holding on at Seton Hill, 75-71, in a game the Hawks needed to win to fuel a final charge for a Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference tournament berth. IUP was winless in all seven conference road games this season.
“We went down (to the locker room), and I was kind of excited and saying, ‘Act like you’ve been there before,’” IUP coach Joe Lombardi said. “But these guys haven’t been there before. They haven’t won since Ashland on the road. That was November. So, to be able to get a road win is more connecting even when you win at home.”
It was a necessary win and came just in time, elevating IUP (12-13, 7-10 PSAC) from a precarious spot in seventh place to a hopeful position in a fifth in a four-team race for three remaining spots in the PSAC West. IUP trails Slippery Rock (13-13, 9-9), holds the tiebreaker over Seton Hill (14-11, 7-10) and leads Pitt-Johnstown (11-14, 7-11) and Clarion (11-14, 6-13).
“It feels wonderful,” Lombardi said. “As a coach, when you don’t win for a while on the road, you don’t know if you’ll ever win on the road. It’s just the way coaches are. You lose a couple in a row and you wonder when the next one is coming.”
IUP guards Christian Moore and Kymani Merraro made sure IUP went home with this one. They turned in their best combined game of the season, going 12-for-20 from the field overall, 9-for-14 from 3-point range and 10-for-10 from the free throw line.
The Hawks scored their last 13 points from the free throw line on 17 attempts and sprinkled in enough stops on defense to hold on. IUP finished 13-for-20 from the line after an 0-for-3 start, and Seton Hill was 9-for-14.
Other than free throws, the teams put up matching stats. Each team shot 26-for-49 (53.1 percent), and each team made 10 3-point field goals. Each team committed 12 turnovers. IUP led the rebounding by six, 30-24, and gave up only five offensive boards.
Seton Hill’s Kedrick Curtis, a 6-foot-7 sophomore, finished with a game-high 25 points, including 13 of his team’s first 15 of the second half. Ryan Meis, a graduate guard, scored 19, including back-to-back 3s that gave his team its last lead.
“It’s a tribute to the guys,” Lombardi said. “We’ve had a lot of games on the road we haven’t been able to close out. We played for 40 minutes tonight. Some guys just played with confidence. There have been a number of guys struggling a little bit, and they just stay with it.”
Moore, a 6-1 junior, was foremost among the struggling Hawks. His team’s go-to guy, his scoring average dropped from 20 points per game early in the season to below 17 entering last night. He responded with 23 points on 7-for-11 shooting, including 5-for-8 from 3-point range, to go with eight rebounds, six assists and two steals.
“Christian, that’s the way we need him to play,” Lombardi said. “We need him to win games. Everybody has a go-to guy, and he’s not going to be there every night, but he’s struggled to adapt to that role. This was probably his best game of the year. We needed it. I’m just real proud of him.”
“This was my most well-rounded game,” Moore said. “I just focused on making my game simple and making the easy play and taking what’s given to you, but all in all the focus is on each other first and on defense before self, and this game I focused on playing for my teammates, and everything came with it.”
The guards led the assault against Seton Hill’s zone defense. Merraro, a freshman whose buzzer-beating 3 made the difference in a 59-56 over Seton Hill at home in mid-January, finished with 20 points on the strength of four 3s. Ian Herring, a freshman forward, chipped in 12 points, four rebounds and two steals while keying the offense off high-post entry passes.
“It’s amazing because you don’t practice against it a lot and it’s the second time this year they played against zone and the guys acted like they see it all the time,” Lombardi said. “They played with confidence, took to the coaching and came in with a game plan and a couple ideas how to attack it and beat it. And we got a little bit of a surprising performance from Ian. He elevated us in that situation in the middle of the zone and got some things done.”
IUP led 39-34 at halftime and stretched the lead to 11 early in the second half. Seton Hill answered with a 20-7 burst for a two-point lead at 61-59 going into the last seven minutes.
Moore answered Seton Hill’s go-ahead 3 with his fifth 3 with 6:40 left for a 62-61 lead that set up the march to the free throw line.
Seton Hill pulled as close as 67-66 going into the last two minutes, but Merraro made two free throws, Herring one and Moore two for a six-point edge.
IUP kept the margin at two possessions when Merraro made two free throws with 8.9 seconds left and Sarp Furton his second of two to set the final with 4.4 seconds left.
“We just grabbed it,” Moore said. “I know the whole team wanted it, and I have faith in my team. Granted, we’re young, but we’re cracking stone every day and I think the stone is finally starting to crumble.”
Afterward, Merraro and Moore were asked what it was going to be like boarding the bus for a trip home with a win under their belts.
“I hope the air smells better,” Merraro said with a laugh. “The mood will be better. The food will taste better. It’s going to be a better trip. I wish it were longer.”
“Yeah,” Moore chimed in. “Me, too. Now we need to get ready for Slippery Rock.”
IUP plays host to Slippery Rock at 3 p.m. Saturday. IUP has won 34 straight home games over Slippery Rock dating to 1991.
Slippery Rock beat Clarion, 83-72, last night. In the other PSAC West game, California helped IUP’s cause by beating Pitt-Johnstown, 91-79.
“This was the first win in this stretch we knew we need to have to get where we want to go,” Moore said. “We’re going to enjoy it as much as we can, and tomorrow we’ve got to get back to the drawing board, get back at it, another task at hand, just taking it day by day and trying to win the day.”
WEDNESDAY’S BOX SCORE
IUP 75, SETON HILL 71
IUP (12-13)
Brooks 3-4 1-3 7, Grove 3-10 0-0 6, Merraro 5-9 6-6 20, Moore 7-11 4-4 23, Furtun 1-3 1-4 3, Herring 5-8 1-3 12, Triggs 2-3 0-0 4, Pickens 0-1 0-0 0, Totals 26-49 (.531) 13-30 (.650)
Seton Hill (14-11)
Curtis 8-16 5-7 25, Ortiz 1-4 2-2 5, Gillespie 4-5 2-4 10, Meis 7-9 0-0 19, Brewer 0-3 0-0 0, Rice 1-3 0-1 4, Lattimore 2-6 0-0 5, Belade 2-3 0-0 4, Coury 0-0 0-0 0, Totals 26-49 (.531) 9-14 (.643) 71
Halftime — IUP 39-34. 3-point field goals — IUP 10-23 (Grove 0-4, Merraro 4-6, Moore 5-8, Furtun 0-2, Herring 1-2, Pickens 0-1), Seton Hill 10-25 (Curtis 2-5, Ortiz 1-3, Meis 5-7, Brewer 0-3, Rice 1-3, Lattimore 1-3, Belade 0-1). Rebounds — IUP 30 (Moore 8), Seton Hill 24 (Curtis 8). Assists — IUP 17 (Moore 6), Seton Hill 14 (Brewer 4). Turnovers — IUP 12, Seton Hill 12. Total fouls — IUP 13, Seton Hill 20. Fouled out — Rice.
WEDNESDAY’S PSAC GAMES
West
IUP 75, Seton Hill 71
Slippery Rock 83, Clarion 72
California 91, Pitt-Johnstown 79
East
Millersville 88, Bloomsburg 68
West Chester 84, East Stroudsburg 80
Shepherd 91, Mansfield 57
Shippensburg 76, Kutztown 70
SATURDAY’S PSAC GAMES
Games at 3 p.m.
West
Slippery Rock at IUP
Gannon at Pitt-Johnstown
Seton Hill at Edinboro
East
East Stroudsburg at Mansfield
Lock Haven at Millersville
Shepherd at Kutztown
West Chester at Bloomsburg
