EAST STROUDSBURG, PA (February 15, 2010) – In the second showdown between nationally-ranked powers, No. 21 Kutztown University edged No. 12 East Stroudsburg, 65-63, before a fired-up, hand-clapping, toe-tapping sellout crowd at Koehler Fieldhouse in a Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference Eastern Division men's basketball treasure Monday night. (BOXSCORE)
In sweeping the season series, Kutztown (20-3 overall, 7-3 PSAC East) moved into a three-way first-place tie with East Stroudsburg (20-3, 7-3) and Cheyney (14-9, 7-3). The Golden Bears own the tiebreaker over ESU after ending a two-game conference road losing streak. Kutztown defeated ESU, 87-84, in the first meeting at Keystone Arena on Jan. 13.
Postponed from its originial Feb. 6 date because of snow, this matchup was worth the wait. The ESU fans may have headed out into the snowy night hoarse, but they received their money's worth and then some. This battle was everything it should be between a pair of teams ranked in the NCAA Atlantic regional rankings. Kutztown entered ranked sixth and ESU was second in the region behind West Liberty State.
Kutztown's second consecutive 20-win season wasn't secured until Andy Heimbach's baseline jumper fell short as time expired. It's the third time in KU men's basketball history that it has won 20 games in a season. In addition, it was also the first time in the long history of the men's basketball program; Kutztown has won 20 or more games in consecutive years.
With the game tied, 62-62, junior forward Tamir Johnson turned garbage into gold by putting home a missed Stephen Dennis jump shot with 25.8 seconds remaining that gave KU the lead for good, 64-62. On the ensuing ESU possession, Marcus Brown split a pair of foul shots with 12.6 seconds remaining. Johnson corralled the rebound and after missing two free throws, Julius Gray hustled to tie up an ESU player and forced a jump ball.
After KU earned possession of the ball on the alternating possession, freshman guard Lance Chisholm made one foul shot with 7.3 seconds remaining that gave the Golden Bears a 65-63 lead.
“All season long, coach has told me to go for every rebound,” Johnson said. “I knew Steve was going to take the shot so I just focused on getting to weak side and get the loose ball.”
Johnson finished with a game-high 12 rebounds. The Golden Bears were led by Dennis' 27 points. Freshman Jon DeShields scored 11 of his career-high 12 points in the first half. Junior center Ryan Washington added 11 points.
With 2,220 career points, Dennis moved past former East Stroudsburg standout Jon Roberts and into fourth place on the all-time PSAC scoring list. He also became the fifth men's basketball player in PSAC history to reach the 2,200 plateau.
East Stroudsburg was led by Duane Johnson, who scored 12 points, and Marcus Brown, who added 10 points. The Golden Bear defense was also the difference. Since Cheyney, singed KU for 94 points, Kutztown has held its last three opponents below 70 points. Kutztown limited ESU to 22 points below its season average.
“This was another great basketball game,” Kutztown head coach Bernie Driscoll said. “To come into a hostile environment and pull this game out was nice. It was really loud in the gym. They reminded me of a Cheyney crowd. I thought we became unraveled and allowed ESU to get back into the game, but we were able to persevere and get back to doing what we needed to do to pull out a win.”
At times, the noise level swelled to 747-jet takeoff levels especially after ESU scored 10 straight points in the final four minutes, 19 seconds to erase a 62-52 Kutztown deficit. When Heimbach tied the game, 62-62, with a 3-pointer from the left wing with 1:00 remaining, the headache-o-meter increased to quadruple super-duper migraine as the volume approached rock concert proportions.
“I think we got too comfortable when we were up by 10,” Johnson said. “I didn't really get nervous until I shot an air ball from the foul line. I was lucky that Julius tipped the ball after I missed the second foul shot and that we had people on the foul line for a rebound.”
Thanks to a quick starting second half in which Kutztown scored the first six points to increase its 36-32 halftime advantage to 42-32 with 18:07 remaining, the Golden Bears muted the East Stroudsburg crowd. The Golden Bears continued to hold off several ESU flurries to maintain the lead. Washington made a pair of foul shots with 4:19 remaining to give the Golden Bears a 62-52 lead. Everything seemed to be in order for a comfortable victory.
Like a quick summer rainstorm, ESU scored seven points in less than two minutes to trim KU's lead to 62-59 with 2:34 remaining. Almost every fan inside of the gym, stood on their feet -- including the one fan dressed as a yellow banana. Kutztown turned the ball over and became a little rattled by the Warriors' pressure defense.
“We knew it was going to be this type of game so we just had to remain poised,” Dennis said. “East Stroudsburg is a real good team with a tough press. The crowd was really loud tonight but we had to stay focused and communicate with each other. Tamir came up huge for us at the end. He cleans up for us.”
During the first half, Kutztown overcame a five-minute scoring drought and an 11-0 ESU run to grab a four-point halftime lead. The first-half catalysts for the Golden Bears were Dennis and DeShields, who combined for 28 points. DeShields capped his brilliant first-half performance by scoring a layup as the halftime buzzer sounded.
Dennis proved to be a menace again for East Stroudsburg especially in the first half, scoring 17 points. He scored nine of Kutztown's last 14 points in the first half using a variety of drives, and jump shots.
Kutztown continues its four-game road trip when it visits West Chester University at Hollinger Fieldhouse Wednesday night beginning at 8 p.m. Fans can listen to all of the action on the Golden Bear Radio Network.
--KU--
