INDIANA, Pa. - It was a six-point game with 7:19 to play, but after Khari Williams' 3-pointer, Millersville missed seven consecutive shots and three-straight free throws while sixth-ranked Indiana (Pa.) went on a 17-1 run in span of six minutes to pull away, 81-58. 

The game was far closer than the final score would indicate, but the Marauders' offense struggled to get rolling early and disappeared late. Millersville fell behind 11-2 in the first six minutes but managed to play the unbeaten Crimson Hawks better than even until the last seven minutes. The Marauders shot 30.9% from the field and made just 17-of-30 free throws. IUP hit 49.1% of its shots and sank 17-of-22 from the line. 

James Sullivan kept the Marauders afloat early, scoring 15 first-half points, and he entered into the 1,000-point club with his sixth point of the game. But Sullivan went scoreless in the second half. Jaden Faulkner finished with 15 points and five assists, and Khari Williams scored all 12 of his points in the second half after starting 0-of-5 from the field. 

Armoni Foster led IUP with 27 points and Ethan Porterfield added 23, sinking 3-of-4 3-pointers. 

GAME HIGHLIGHTS
• While Millersville didn't make its second field goal until 6:38 into the game, it managed to hang around and trailed 37-26 at the break. The Marauders' woes at the free throw line were a difference-maker as they missed 10 in the first half. Still, three times in the second half, Millersville cut IUP's lead down to six. The first time came with 14:19 to play when Faulkner scored on a drive and Williams hit a 3-pointer on back-to-back possessions. But immediately, IUP extended the lead back to 14 with two-straight buckets and a pair of Foster free throws sandwiched around three-straight empty possession for the Marauders. 
• Down 54-40 with 11:40 left, Millersville chipped away at the deficit again. A 10-2 Millersville run capped by Mekhi Hendricks' 3-pointer with 9:29 again put Millersville within six. IUP scored the next five points to push the lead back to double-figures. Faulkner made two free throws and Williams' 3-pointer made the score 61-55. But on the ensuing IUP possession, the Crimson Hawks missed three shots but grabbed three offensive rebounds. The fourth shot--a corner three from Tommy DeMogerontas--dropped. That proved to be the backbreaker for Millersville as it went without a field goal for nearly five minutes. 

POSTGAME REACTION FROM COACH CASEY STITZEL
• On IUP holding off the second-half runs: "Every time we got it to six, a lot of times we made mental mistakes, whether it was a turnover, didn't grab a rebound cleanly and gave them too many chances. We have to get past that point where we can't beat ourselves. We have to make teams make really good plays to beat us. Every time we had momentum, we made two or three not smart plays. You can't do that on the road against good team like that."
• On the team's offensive slump: "It's all of the above. All coaches have things we worry about in the preseason. I did not think offense would be an issue like this. It's a long season, and we are in a little bit in a funk. Teams are packing the paint and making us make outside shots, and we aren't making them. It makes life harder on Caden (Najdawi) because they are sticking two and three guys on him. We have to do a better job on offense moving the ball and setting screens. And making foul shots. At the half, we were down 11 and missed 10 foul shots with some of them being one-and-ones. Foul shooting, making open shots, we've got to get better at that. Our defense and rebounding was good enough to win."

NOTES
• Sullivan became the 39th player in program history--and the second this season--to reach 1,000 career points. He joined Caden Najdawi, who reached the milestone in November. Along with Khari Williams, Millersville now has three players with 1,000 career points playing together for the first time since 1998-99 (Terry Howse, Jason Seitz and Jamal Palmer). 
• After scoring at least 81 points in five of the first six games, Millersville has been held to fewer than 60 in the last two and have made just 30.1% of its shots. 

UP NEXT
• Millersville makes a return trip to the PSAC West on Saturday and Sunday, taking on Seton Hill and Cal U in a pair of road crossover games.