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BLOOMSBURG, Pa. - Junior
Carnell McGirt (Philadelphia, Pa./Roman Catholic (Valley Forge Military Academy))'s put-back with 13.8 seconds left in regulation completed another second-half comeback as the Bloomsburg University men's basketball team won for the sixth time in seven games, 78-77, over visiting Millersville University on Saturday afternoon at the Nelson Field House. The Huskies improved to 9-6 overall and 5-6 in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Eastern Division. The Marauders dropped to 5-10 overall and 4-7 in league play.
McGirt, plagued with foul trouble for most of the contest, was limited to just 14 minutes off the bench but still scored 11 points and had three offensive rebounds. He scored eight of Bloomsburg's final eleven points over the three minutes of regulation - none bigger than collecting an offensive rebound after a missed jumper from redshirt junior
Christian Mortellite (Hammonton, N.J./Hammonton) and then laying it in with just under 14 seconds left. Millersville had a chance at the end but Marcus Adkinson missed a layup with four seconds left. Amadou Kaba pulled down the offensive rebound but the Marauders could not get another shot attempt off.
Mortellite finished with a game-high 22 points and added a team-leading nine rebounds - narrowly missing his third double-double of the season. It was his 13th 20-point effort of the season and he moved into 18th place on the school's all-time scoring list with 1,202 career points. Senior
Yahmir Greenlee (Philadelphia, Pa./Boys Latin) added 12 points for his sixth consecutive double-digit scoring effort. Senior
Malik Sneed (Washington, D.C./Spingarn (Prince George's CC)) hit double figures for just the second time this season as he chipped in 10 points.
The first half saw eight ties and five lead changes with the Marauders taking a 32-30 lead into the locker room at halftime. Both teams never led by more than four points in the opening twenty minutes. Mortellite led the Huskies with eight points in the first half while Millersville got nine points from Jordan Greene and eight each from Kaba and Cornell Yarde II.
Millersville got its lead up to six points, 37-31, in the opening minute of the second half before the Huskies went on a 7-0 run to take a 38-37 advantage, after a pair of foul shots from McGirt, with 17:33 remaining. The Marauders, however, went on a 12-2 run to take a 49-40 lead, and then, built their lead up to as many as ten points, 59-49, with 10:06 left after Adkinson hit his second three-pointer of the contest.
The Huskies, however, didn't flinch. Bloomsburg went on a 13-2 run over the next four minutes to erase the ten-point deficit and take a one-point lead, 62-61, after a pair of free throws from Mortellite with 5:52 left in regulation. Mortellite scored six of the Huskies' 13 points during the stretch.
Senior
Donell Diggs (Washington, D.C./Takoma Academy (Prince George's CC)) hit a pair of foul shots to extend the lead to 67-63 with 4:45 left before the visitors went on a 7-0 run to take a 70-67 advantage with 3:16 remaining. The Marauders would lead by three on two more occasions down the stretch - 75-72 with 1:46 left and 77-74 with 1:16 left - but the Huskies again did not back down. McGirt cut the lead to one, 77-76, off a beautfiul dish from Greenlee with 59 seconds left before Yarde II missed a jumper at the other end. Kaba, however, pulled down the offensive rebound with 38 seconds left and Millersville took a timeout.
Following the timeout, Greene, who led Millersville with 20 points, had the ball knocked away by McGirt as he drove down the lane. The Huskies drove down the floor to set up McGirt's heroics at the other end.
The Huskies, who had back-to-back 59-point second halves earlier in the week, scored 48 points on 13-of-21 (61.9%) shooting in the second half on Saturday. Bloomsburg also made 20-of-25 (80.0%) from the foul line in the final half and finished going 22-of-27 (81.5%) from the charity stripe.
Millersville had five players in double figures. Kaba finished with a double-double as he scored 15 points and grabbed 13 rebounds.
Bloomsburg will head to Kutztown on Wednesday, January 18, to battle the Golden Bears. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.
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