SHIPPENSBURG, Pa. – The Mansfield University men's basketball team stormed back from down 17 to cut their deficit to six with a minute remaining, but Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Eastern Division third-place Shippensburg University closed out the final minute to earn a 94-82 victory on Monday night, Feb. 21.

Trailing 44-34 coming out of the break, the Mounties (4-22, 3-17 PSAC) used a 7-0 run from freshman Scott Woodring and freshman Justice Smith to cut the lead to 47-41 with 17:46 to go. However, the Raiders (16-8, 13-6 PSAC) continued to match the Mounties shooting effort, as both teams shot over 62 percent from the floor to start the second half, while knocking down their first three trifectas and forcing five MU turnovers to build their lead.

The Raiders extended advantage to 64-47, at the 12:56 mark, their largest to this point. However, the relentless Mountaineer defense came to life, sparking an 11-0 run - with six points coming off Raider's turnovers - to cut the deficit to 64-58 with 10:28 to go.

The Mounties remained within striking distance over the next five minutes and cut the Raider lead to single digits, 69-60, following a 2-of-2 trip at the line from sophomore Marcus Friend with 5:22 remaining.
The game of runs continued, and the Raiders matched their largest lead of the game, 87-70, at the 3:27 mark, but the Mountaineers responded with a 12-1 run over the ensuing two minutes to cut the lead to six with just under a minute to go.

However, the clock was no longer on the Mountaineers side as the Raiders netted their final six free-throw attempts to close out the victory.

The Mounties finished 20-of-21 from the charity stripe as a team, but the Raiders knocked down 11 shots from behind the arch, compared to four from MU.

Smith led four mountaineers in double-figures, finishing with 25 points on 8-of-17 shooting, while pulling down 10 rebounds and going a perfect 9-of-9 at the line. Sophomore Jaz Farrell added 17 points, grabbed eight rebounds, senior Eli Alvin finished with 15 points, a team-high five assists and three steals and freshman Manir Waller added 13 points and seven rebounds.

In the first half, the Raiders controlled the contest early, building a 23-13 lead through the opening 10 minutes. However, a trifecta by Farrell sparked a 9-1 Mountaineers run to cut the deficit to two with 6:50 to go. The Mounties went 4-of-4 from the charity stripe during the run.

Shippensburg knocked down a shot from deep to extend their lead back to five, but the Mounties outscored the Raiders, 12-6 over the ensuing four minutes to take their first lead of the night. The Mountaineers remained perfect at the foul line, and they started to push the ball in transition, leading to four points on the break.

The Mounties took a 34-33 lead with 2:51 to go in the half, but the Raiders scored the final 10 points of the period to take a 10-point lead into the break. Alvin knocked down a pair of triples to lead the Mounties with 11 points, while Farrell added nine.

Ship won the rebound battle 29-19 in the first half, including pulling 13 offensive rebounds compared to the Mounties' eight.

Dom Sleva and Jake Biss combined for 64 points on 23-of-41 shooting to lead the Raiders. Biss knocked down a game-high seven 3-pointers, while Biss pulled in a game-high 17 rebounds.

The Mounties remain on the road on Wednesday, Feb. 22 as they travel to East Stroudsburg University for a 7:30 p.m. PSAC contest.