Box Score
SCHUYLKILL HAVEN, Pa.– Eastern University Men's Basketball erased a seven-point halftime deficit and ground out a 56-48 win at Penn State-Schuylkill.
Draig Ruff led the Eagles with 14 points, eight rebounds, and five steals.
How It Happened:
The Eagles(2-1) scuffled down the stretch of the first half and saw a 19-13 lead disappear as the host Lions ended the first half on a 12-0 run. The Eagles were only 9-of-28 from the floor and struggled against a physical Lion zone. The Eagles turned the ball over 16 times in the half and did not go to the foul line.
The second half had a similar feel early as the Lions held a 31-24 lead four minutes in.
Clifton Adams hit a runner int he lane and Ruff had a steal and a pair of free throws to pull the Eagles to within three. After the Lions answered with a shot at the other end, Ruff hit another inside shot to pull the Eagles to within three.
Eastern finally pulled level on a corner 3-pointer from freshman guard
Sam Gallardo with 13 minutes to play. A little over a minute later,
Terron Bacon hit a 3-pointer from the other corner to put the Eagles up for good.
Led by 6-of-6 from the line by Ruff and 4-of-4 from
Gabe Perez, the Eagles went 14-of-16 from the line in the second half. Ruff had a put-back basket on one of the two misses from the line.
At the other end, the Eagles were able to defend with out fouling and forced the Lions into tough shots. Schuylkill hit only 9-of-24 from the floor and 4-of-6 from he line after the intermission.
Michael Bowlers had 11 of his 18 rebounds in the second half. Despite missing 27 shots in the second half, the Lions were only able to grab five offensive rebounds.
The Lions stayed within striking distance, but the Eagles were able to control the pace, limit turnovers, and make foul shots to close the game.
Bowlers, who was subject to double-teams all night finished with 10 points to go with his 18 rebounds. Perez had 12 points and seven rebounds. Bacon was 3-of-5 from behind the arc for nine points and Gallardo had seven points, two steals, and two assists in critical minutes off the bench.
Coach Pruessner Says:
"We got another big performance down the stretch from Sam. He made some great decisions while attacking their zone and came up with some crucial steals in crucial points of the game."
"We played our tempo down the stretch and broke a zone that gave us fits all night. Again, we made a lot of mistakes, which we knew we would be dealing with at the beginning of the year. However, we made winning plays down the stretch which allowed us to come away with the win."
Up Next:
The Eagles will drive south for the weekend for a tournament hosted by the University of Mary Washington. Eastern will play Washington and Lee in one Saturday game and Mary Washington will play Merchant Marine in the other.
