Box Score

BLOOMSBURG—Lorenzo Christmas (Norristown, Norristown) scored a career-high 25 points to lead the Huskies, as the Bloomsburg University men's basketball team ousted the Marauders of Millersville University, 91-87, in an overtime thriller to open up their Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Eastern Division schedule. The Huskies improved to 5-8 (1-0 PSAC East) on the season, while the Marauders dropped to 5-7 (0-1).

The game's onset was disastrous for Bloomsburg, as Millersville jumped out to a 12-0 lead in the game's first five minutes. Slowly, the Huskies started their offense, but the Marauders drifted away with their advantage, opening the lead to the game's largest at 18 at 27-9 with nine minutes left in the first half.

BU chipped away at the lead as coach John Sanow's Huskies settled down and began to sink shots. Dontahe Jordan (Williamsport, Williamsport) scored 11 in the period, while the Huskies doubled-up the Marauders 22-11 to end the half and entered the break trailing by seven, 31-38.

It took just three minutes for the Huskies to close the gap, and with 16:58 to play in regulation, the game was deadlocked at 43-43. The teams swapped the lead several times, and trailing 50-51, the Huskies went on a 9-0 run to secure their largest lead of the game at 59-51.

Bloomsburg maintained a seven point lead with five minutes to play, but the Marauders kept up the pressure. With less than 30 seconds to play, Millersville's Demond Vance sank a three-pointer to cut the Huskies' lead to one. A pair of good free throws by BU's Jesse Betar (Altoona, Altoona) opened the lead back to three, and with 3.5 seconds to play, Mike Seibert scored a three-point jumper to tie the game 80-80 and force overtime.

Bloomsburg's shooters caught fire in the second half, as the Huskies made 65% from the field in the period, including five of six from beyond the arc. In the clutch, the Huskies' free-throw shooting saw dramatic improvement; Bloomsburg sank 10 of 12 from the charity stripe in the second half. Christmas made five of six from the field and scored 18 of his 25 in the period.

In extra time, a three-point play by John Schwarz (Delta, Perry Hall) gave the Maroon and Gold a quick lead. Seibert sank another big three to tie the score with just under two minutes remaining. Trevon Johnson (Snow Hill, MD, Snow Hill) responded with a layup, and a pair of foul shots by Jordan secured BU's win, as the Huskies snuck past Millersville 91-87. The Huskies improved to 2-0 in OT games this season, while the Marauders have yet to win a game on the road.

Behind Christmas' 20 points, Schwarz scored 20 on the day; along with a game-high 11 rebounds, Schwarz recorded his second double-double of the season. Jordan finished with 13 points, while Larry Webster (Hagerstown, MD/Elkton) III (Elkton, MD, Elkton) and Johnson each scored 11. Johnson and Betar both tied with a game-high four assists.

Four Marauders posted double-digit scoring: Mike Holley (19), Seibert (18), Vance (18), and James Miller (14). Bernard Brown led the Marauders with 10 rebounds.

The Bloomsburg Huskies travel to Kutztown University for their next game on Saturday, January 15. Tip-off is scheduled for 3 p.m.