Reading Eagle: Big Day for Johnson, Kutztown

VIDEO: Johnson Scores 1,000th Career Point | Game Highlights
 
KUTZTOWN, Pa. – The Kutztown University men's basketball team continued its home dominance on Saturday afternoon in its 99-76 win over Bloomsburg University in a Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) battle inside Keystone Arena.
 
Kutztown (12-2, 9-2 PSAC East) won its 11th straight home game on Saturday and defeated the Huskies for the 13th consecutive time inside Keystone Arena. Junior Josh Johnson (Norristown, Pa./Norristown) threw down a thunderous alley-oop dunk at the 10:44 mark in the first half to go over the 1,000-point mark in his KU career. He became the 24th member of the KU 1,000-point club.
 
With the win, Kutztown has a chance to move into a tie for first place in the PSAC East with its 9-2 conference record. West Chester began the day in sole possession of first with its 8-1 record and faces East Stroudsburg Saturday.
 
KU and Bloomsburg (7-7, 5-5) battled back-and-forth for the first nine minutes of play with the Golden Bears holding an 18-16 lead at the 11:20 mark in the first half.
 
The Golden Bears ended the first half on a 28-19 run that gave them a 46-35 lead going into the half.
 
Following a 9-0 run from Bloomsburg from the end of the first half into the beginning of the second half, KU went on an 8-0 run of its own to push its lead to 54-40 with 16:24 left to play. The Golden Bears cruised from that point on en route to its 99-76 victory.
 
Johnson posted a team-high 18 points for Kutztown to go with 10 rebounds and two steals. He was 6-of-10 from the field and threw down three dunks in the contest. Johnson posted his fifth double-double of the season.
 
Anthony Lee (Willow Grove, Pa./Abington) recorded 18 points, five rebounds and two steals. Senior Anthony Selby (Jersey City, N.J./Williamstown (Burlington County CC)) had 10 points, including three dunks of his own, and three assists.
 
Sophomore Ethan Ridgeway (West Chester, Pa./Bayard Rustin) continued his productive play off the bench, recording 10 points and seven assists. He also threw down a slam near the end of the second half.
 
Austin Beidelman (Schnecksville, Pa./Parkland) posted seven points and six assists. He also managed to have no turnovers in the contest. Beidelman has recorded 22 assists to just five turnovers in his last four games.
 
Martin Dietrich (Maytown, Pa./Donegal), Will Adams (Philadelphia, Pa./Imhotep (McMurry)) and Dan Cuevas (Stroudsburg, Pa./Stroudsburg) all played well off the bench for KU. Dietrich had six points and three rebounds. Adams recorded nine points and five rebounds, while Cuevas posted 12 points and five boards.
 
KU held decisive advantages over Bloomsburg in both fast-break points and bench scoring. The Golden Bears had a 29-2 in the fast-break department, while also having a 40-12 advantage in bench points.
 
Christian Mortellite had a team-high 20 points for Bloomsburg, while Wes Lyons posted 16 points and a team-high eight rebounds. Malik Garner recorded 15 points and five rebounds.
 
The Golden Bears return to action on Wednesday, Jan. 13 at 7 p.m., in a non-conference matchup with Philadelphia University at the Gallagher Center.