Nwosu's clutch bucket lifts Millersville past Shippensburg and into first place in the East

Wednesday, February 2

Shippensburg, PA

8:00 PM

Millersville University

18-4,12-4PSAC

Shippensburg

14-6,11-4PSAC

Millersville

Shippensburg

Nwosu's clutch bucket lifts Millersville past Shippensburg and into first place in the East

2/2/2022 9:46:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Box Score

By: Ethan Hulsey, Director of Athletic Communications

SHIPPENSBURG, Pa. - Every half-court possession was a war, but Millersville's Justin Nwosu, who totaled 14 points and 12 rebounds, hit the tie-breaking basket with 1:09 left and then sank two game-clinching free throws in the final seconds to give Millersville a hard-fought 55-51 victory over Shippensburg Wednesday night. The win was Millersville's ninth in a row and pushed it past the Raiders into first place in the PSAC East.

With just over a minute remaining and the game tied 51-51, Millersville's Khari Williams drove to his left and kicked a pass to an open Nwosu, a step inside the 3-point arc. With a smooth catch-and-shoot, Nwosu broke the tie. Then, it was all up to Millersville's defense, which had been stellar all game. The Marauders forced Shippensburg to miss two contested shots and then caused two turnovers in the final minute.
The game was exactly what should have been expected between two of the PSAC's top-ranked defensive teams. James Sullivan chased Shippensburg's former PSAC East Athlete of the Year Jake Biss all game and limited him to five points on 2-of-8 shooting--Biss' lowest point total of the season. Sullivan finished with 14 points on 7-of-16 shooting with five rebounds and two steals. The Marauders, the No. 1 3-point shooting defense in the PSAC, limited Shippensburg's interior opportunities and forced the Raiders' bigs behind the 3-point line. The strategy worked as the Raiders made just 5-of-27 3-pointers. Millersville fared no better from three, but attempted just 10, making one.
The win was Millersville's first inside Heiges Fieldhouse since 2015 and ended the Raiders' seven game winning streak in the series. The Marauders have now won five-straight road games for the first time since 2006-07 and nine-straight PSAC games for the first time since 1993.
GAME HIGHLIGHTS
• The defense set the tone early, allowing Millersville to build a 24-14 lead with just 4:23 remaining the first half. Biss, however, scored all five of his points on back-to-back possessions, sparking Shippensburg to an 11-2 run to close the half. Millersville extended the lead from 26-25 to 30-25 by scoring on its first two possessions of the second half, but that would be its largest lead the rest of the way. Shippensburg took its first lead with 16:10 to go, and from there, the lead changed hands three times, the score stood tied six times, and neither team held a lead of more than three until Nwosu's final two free throws with two seconds to play.
• With just under two minutes remaining and the score tied at 49, Jaden Faulkner put Millersville in front with a drive to the hoop. Kion Hardy retied the game with an 18-foot jumper. Then came Nwosu's long two that gave Millersville the 53-51 lead. The Raiders looked for an answer from Biss, but his 3-pointer missed. An offensive rebound got the ball back to Biss, but his second try missed with 40 seconds to go. Millersville drained the shot clock before Faulkner's try from the paint bounced out. Rashon Johnson gathered the long rebound and dribbled in a sprint up the right side of the court. Faulkner stayed close, and that presence caused Johnson to lose control, and the ball skipped out of bounds with four seconds left.
• Shippensburg fouled immediately to stop the clock, but Khari Williams missed the front end of a one-and-one. Shippensburg called a quick timeout to set-up a play, needing to travel three-quarters of the court in three seconds. The inbounds pass, however, sailed out of bounds without being touched. Nwosu was then fouled, and he put the Raiders out of reach by sinking both free throws with two seconds to play.
POSTGAME REACTION FROM COACH CASEY STITZEL
• On the defensive battle: "That's what we've been preparing for since the first meeting. We knew we had to get better on defense and with rebounding. We really focused on those two things, knowing that when you play team twice, a team that is really well-coached, you have to grind out the game. That has won us a lot of games this year. Justin hit the big shot, Jaden made a big drive before that. James held Biss to five points. Justin probably played the best game of his career. Jaden played really well. Everyone played well. It was just a great team win."
• On Nwosu's performance: "It's maturity. When we lost here two years ago in the playoffs, he played one of his worst games of his career. We watch the film, and he came in today with a different mindset. He had 11 defensive rebounds and was after every loose ball. We put him on Carlos Carter, and he did a great job with him. He forced a turnover down the stretch. He's always been talented, and now he's becoming a winning basketball player."
• On the feeling in the locker room: "I told them to enjoy the win tonight. We are off tomorrow, and it's been a long week with a lot of games. Some of these guys came back for a fifth year to play in games like this, so they should enjoy it tonight. But I reminded them that the job isn't finished. I'm a Kobe Bryant guy, and I remember him being asked why he wasn't smiling up 2-0 in the finals. He said, 'Why should I smile when the job's not finished?' We've got a great East Stroudsburg team coming to Pucillo Saturday and they are going to be really hyped to play us, so we've got to get ready for them"
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
• Millersville hit 46.2% from the field while holding Shippensburg to 32.2% shooting.
• Nwosu and Sullivan led four Marauders in double-figures and tied for team-high honors. Faulkner added 10 points and three assists, and Najdawi scored 10 on 4-of-6 shooting.
NOTES
• Millersville is now 9-1 against PSAC East teams. Its lone loss came at home to Shippensburg on Jan. 10. Millersville is now a half-game up on Shippensburg in the standings. East Stroudsburg, at 10-4, is 1 1/2 games out of first.
• Millersville, with 18 wins, is tied with IUP and Mercyhurst for the most wins among PSAC teams.
• Prior to Wednesday's win, Millersville was 0-2 when scoring fewer than 60 points.
NEXT
• East Stroudsburg comes to Pucillo Gymnasium Saturday for a key PSAC East match-up. Tip is at 3 p.m.