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LOCK HAVEN, Pa. –
Lock
Haven University
men’s basketball forward
Joe Walker
(Lock Haven,
Pa./Central Mountain)
made the most of his final game on the home Thomas
Fieldhouse court. The senior had a career-high 36 points
to go with 13 rebounds for his sixth double-double of the
season in the team’s (4-22, 2-9 PSAC West) 71-69 overtime
loss to the University of Pittsburgh-Johnstown (12-13)
tonight.
Walker was 12-of-16 from the line, including two
three-point plays en route to his career high. Fellow
seniors
Quentin Terry (York,
Pa./Central York)
and
Eddie
Christiano (Coal
Township, Pa./Lourdes Regional)
joined Walker with 14 and
13 points, respectively. Classmate
Dan Tomcavage
(Danville,
Pa./Danville)
chipped in with a point and four rebounds, while senior
Adam Holtzer
(Matamoras,
Pa./College Misericordia)
added two rebounds and two assists.
The
back-and-forth affair had nine lead changes, but midway
through the second half, it didn’t look like the Bald
Eagles would get the chance at overtime. Down 56-43 with
10 minutes remaining in regulation, the Bald Eagles went
on a 19-6 run, tying the game at 62 with three minutes
left on a free-throw by Walker.
Fouled on a rebound of an errant Mountain Cat
three-pointer, Terry would hit both free throws to give
LHU a two-point advantage with 40 seconds left. Christiano
would add another free-throw with 11 seconds left, forcing
UPJ to try a long-distance shot for the tie. Rick Mezyk
would answer the call, hitting a long-range bomb from the
right side with three seconds left on the clock to force
overtime.
In
the extra stanza, Walker would answer an early layup with
a pair of free throws, and then another UPJ lay-up would
be nullified by a pair of Walker hits from the charity
stripe, bringing the game to 69-69 with 1:24 left. After a
highly-contested layup by UPJ’s Steve Scorpion at the
1:07
mark, LHU turned the ball over with 50 seconds left.
Pitt-Johnstown couldn’t capitalize, as they were served a
shot-clock violation with 14 seconds left, giving the Bald
Eagles a potential game-tying possession. After a pair of
penetrate-and-kick attempts failed for LHU, a last-second
leaning jumper by Walker would rim out, giving UPJ the
win.
Walker, Terry, Christiano, Tomcavage, Holtzer and the rest
of the Bald Eagles wrap up their season Saturday, Feb. 26
at 5 p.m. as they travel to California University (Pa.). |
