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EAST STROUDSBURG, Pa. – It looked futile at the outset, but the Bloomsburg University men's basketball team rallied to post a stunning 91-84 victory at East Stroudsburg University on Saturday afternoon at ESU's Koehler Fieldhouse. With the win, the Huskies extended their winning streak to five straight and improved to 12-7 overall and 10-5 in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Eastern Division standings. The Warriors had their nine-game winning streak snapped and dropped to 15-4 overall and 11-4 in league play.
 
The win was Bloomsburg's first victory over the Warriors in the last eight tries. The Huskies hadn't beaten East Stroudsburg since an 80-78 win at Nelson Field House on February 22, 2012. It also marked Bloomsburg's first win of the season when trailing at halftime (1-5).
 
After not posting a double-double in his first 42 collegiate games, redshirt sophomore Christian Mortellite (Hammonton, N.J./Hammonton) recorded his second straight double-double with a game-high 26 points to go along with a game-high 11 rebounds. He scored 21 of his 26 points in the second half and collected his 11th 20-point effort of the season.
 
Bloomsburg also got a career-high 22 points from junior Donell Diggs (Washington, D.C./Takoma Academy), who made 14 of his 15 free throw attempts. Senior Charles Haigler (Charles Town, WV/Hargrave Military Academy) (14) and sophomore Alex Prislupsky (Olyphant/Mid-Valley) (10) also ended in double figures.
 
The Huskies could not get anything going early and fell behind 10-0 before fans even had their seats warmed up. It progressively got worse from there as Bloomsburg trailed 19-2 and was behind by as many as 18 – 24-6 – with 9:52 left in the first half.
 
Prislupsky nailed a three-pointer with 9:48 left and, all of a sudden, the game's momentum changed directions. The Prislupsky triple started a 16-0 run for the Huskies and, after falling behind 24-6, Bloomsburg found itself only trailing 24-22 with 7:18 left in the first half. Prislupsky had five points during the spurt while Diggs and Haigler had four points apiece.
 
East Stroudsburg got the lead back up to seven, 37-30, with 1:52 left in the first half and settled for a 43-38 advantage over the Huskies at halftime.
 
The Huskies cut the lead to one, 44-43, early in the second half after a pair of foul shots from Diggs. But, East Stroudsburg went on a 12-2 run to take a 56-45 advantage with 15:54 left and it appeared that the pendulum had returned to the Warriors' favor.
 
But, the never say die Huskies scored 20 of the game's next 30 points and, after Mortellite nailed a three-pointer with 9:04 remaining, Bloomsburg found itself trailing by only one point, 66-65.
 
The teams exchanged baskets over the next three minutes until Bloomsburg took its first lead of the game, 71-70, as Haigler converted a layup with 5:57 left in regulation. After East Stroudsburg's Steven Stoney regained the lead with a pair of foul shots, Mortellite took over. The redshirt sophomore scored Bloomsburg's next eight points and the Huskies were ahead for good, 79-74, with 3:35 left.
 
Foul shooting, which had been a problem for the Huskies in their win over Shippensburg on Wednesday, was not a concern on this day. After sophomore Kyle-Michael Rose (Middletown, DE/Sanford School) put Bloomsburg ahead by seven, 81-74, with 2:15 left, the Huskies went 8-of-8 from the line down the stretch to keep the lead intact. Mortellite finished off the Warriors with a layup with four seconds left before East Stroudsburg's Najee Wells hit a triple as the buzzer sounded for the final margin.
 
Bloomsburg's foul shooting proved to be the difference on Saturday. The Huskies made 31-of-35 from the foul line, including 22-of-23 in the second half, to aid in the seven-point win. Diggs was 14-of-15 while Mortellite finished 8-of-8 from the charity stripe. The Huskies also held a significant, 41-30, edge in rebounding. Mortellite led the way with 11 boards while seniors Wes Lyons (Millville/Millville) and Malik Garner (Philadelphia/Chestnut Hill Academy) added seven and six respectively.
 
Jamal Nwaniemeka paced four Warriors in double figures with 16 points in the loss.
 
The Huskies, winners of five straight, have put themselves right in the hunt for the PSAC East crown with one month remaining in the regular season. Bloomsburg will look to continue its winning ways when it hosts West Chester on Wednesday, February 3, at Nelson Field House. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.