EAST STROUDSBURG, Pa. – Lakeem McAliley scored a game-high 26 points to lead East Stroudsburg (22-7) to an 81-75 win over Shepherd (14-15) in first-round action of PSAC Men's Basketball Tournament at East Stroudsburg on Monday night.
Sophomore guard Carson Poffenberger (Morgantown, W.Va./Morgantown) led the Rams with 19 points. He connected on 7-of-10 field goals with a 4-of-7 effort from three-point range. He was 1-of-1 from the foul line.
Junior guard Phillip Jordan (Rockville, Md./St. Albans) added 18 points, a game-high six assists, and five rebounds. Junior guard Daniel McClain-Corley (Clinton, Md./Massanutten Military Academy) had 18 points and a game-high eight boards. Sophomore guard Jarod Robinson (Laurel, Md./Glenelg Country School) contributed six points and six boards.
Jaelen McGlone added 17 points and Carlos Pepin had 16 points and seven rebounds for the Warriors.
Shepherd had a 38-32 lead at halftime. Poffenberger paced the Rams with 12 first-half points.
East Stroudsburg took the lead for good at 77-75 on a three-pointer by McGlone with 2:06 left in regulation. The Warriors closed the game on a 4-0 run to capture the win.
Shepherd connected on 52.7 percent (29-55) of its field goals with a 36.8 percent (7-19) performance from three-point range. The Rams drained 71.4 percent (10-14) of their free throws.
East Stroudsburg shot 43.8 percent (28-64) from the floor with a 29.6 percent (8-27) effort from beyond the arc. The warriors hit on 89.5 percent (17-19) of their free throws.
Shepherd had a 36-31 rebounding advantage. The Rams forced eight turnovers and committed 18.
The Warriors advance to face West Chester in quarterfinal action of the PSAC Tournament at 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday at West Chester.
Notes: Jon Preston completes his career at Shepherd with 1,166 career points to rank 30th on the Shepherd all-time scoring list … his 725 career rebounds place him 11th on the SU all-time list while his 215 career three-pointers place him fifth … he also added 186 assists and 112 steals.
