Box Score
EAST STROUDSBURG, Pa. – Jon Breeden scored 17 points and Carl Johnson added 16 to lead West Chester to an upset of No. 10 East Stroudsburg on the road to pull into a first-place tie with the Warriors in the Eastern Division of the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference standings.
West Chester (19-6, 17-4 PSAC) upped its winning streak to six games and has now won 9 of its last 10 and 14 of its last 16 to come back from three games down in the league standings and earn a share of first place with one regular-season game left. The Golden Rams also moved to 11-1 on the road in 2012-13.
East Stroudsburg (20-5, 17-4) has now lost its last three games and is in danger of dropping to the second seed in the upcoming postseason tournament. West Chester owns the inside track on first place and controls its own destiny. A win over Cheyney on Wednesday would mean at least a share of the regular season Eastern Division title and the No. 1 seed out of the East for the 2013 PSAC Tournament.
West Chester will play for its first PSAC Eastern Division title since 2006 when the Golden Rams travel to Cheyney on Wednesday evening in the regular-season finale. The Golden Rams have won four Eastern Division crowns previously (1994, 2000, 2002 and 2006).
The Golden Rams rested in third place, three games back of first-place East Stroudsburg, following the Warriors, 87-77, win over West Chester on Feb. 2. Since then, head coach Damien Blair’s charges have rattled off six straight wins, erased a three-game deficit in the standings and climbed two spots into first place.
West Chester jumped out to a 12-2 lead in the first seven minutes of the game and never trailed on Saturday. The Rams pushed its margin to as much as 13 in the first half at the midway mark of the period. East Stroudsburg then went on an 18-6 run to pull within one (30-29) with four minutes left before the break. However, the Golden Rams answered with an 11-5 run to close out the stanza with a 41-34 lead.
Johnson scored 13 of his 16 in the second half while Breeden added 10 of his team-high 17 after the break. West Chester also made 16 of 19 free throws in the second half to keep East Stroudsburg at bay.
West Chester put four players in double figures, with Corey Blake pouring in 13, and Troy Hockaday added nine. Whis Grant scored a game-high 22 points and Terrance King had 20 to lead East Stroudsburg.
West Chester’s 19 wins equals its total from a year ago. The Rams will be going for its first 20-win season since 2002-03 on Wednesday at Cheyney.
