MILLERSVILLE, Pa. - Feeling the effects of an overtime loss 18 hours earlier, Millersville men's basketball slogged through the first 36 minutes against Slippery Rock. Suddenly, Millersville connected on back-to-back 3-pointers and rode a 19-11 run over the final four minutes to a 69-66 PSAC win. 

It was only because of that late offensive burst that Millersville overcame a nightmarish performance both at the line and behind the 3-point arch. The Marauders went 20-for-39 on free throws and did not make a 3-pointer in the game's first 31 minutes, missing their first seven attempts.

"There was more of a hangover from a confidence level than an energy level," said Millersville head coach Casey Stitzel. "Dealing with adversity is a big thing that teams struggle with, and we have to get better with it as the season goes on...The good thing is that we came out of the weekend with a split. There are a lot of life lessons to learn from, and hopefully we'll take that into the next couple of games."

Jaden Faulkner finished with a game-high 22 points but connected on just 8-of-18 free throws. Still, it was Faulkner's 3-pointer with just over four minutes remaining that finally got the Marauders rolling. Trailing 55-50, Faulkner made his second 3-pointer of the game, and after a Slippery Rock turnover, Day Waters connected from deep off a pass from Matt Dade. A five-point deficit suddenly turned into a one-point Millersville advantage.

"When you are playing like we were offensively, somebody just has to put their big boy pants on and make a play," said Stitzel. "...Missing layups and free throws is demoralizing, and when we hit those two threes, all of a sudden the building woke up. All of a sudden we are pressuring the ball more defense. The most demoralizing things are missing free throws, layups and wide open threes. For 36 minutes we did all three. The good news is we stayed with it and found a way to win the game."

Those back-to-back triples series set off a wild final four minutes in which Millersville and Slippery Rock exchanged the lead on six consecutive possessions. Millersville finally got a stop when The Rock's Bobby Clifford was whistled for an offensive foul--his fifth personal--with 1:12 on the clock. Millersville turned its advantage from one point to four when Dade finished off a Faulkner pass through a double team and converted a three-point play. 

Millersville held Slippery Rock scoreless for nearly two minutes but was hardly in the clear. Faulkner made 1-of-2 free throws with 44 seconds to play to go up five, and after a Slippery Rock score, Dylin Borden made two with 26 seconds to play. Lashon Lindsey sank a 3-pointer for The Rock to cut Millersville's edge to 68-66. Forced to foul, Slippery Rock sent Borden to the line. Borden missed both, and with a chance to take the lead, Jomo Goings hoisted a 3-pointer in the closing seconds that hit back iron. Dade out-muscled his opposition for a key rebound and was immediately fouled. Dade missed the first but made the second free throw attempt to build a three-point lead. With three seconds remaining, Slippery Rock heaved the in-bounds pass into the front court. Dade intercepted, sealing the Millersville victory. 

"At the end of the day, our record will show 1-1 in the PSAC, but it was a tough weekend," said Stitzel. "We are struggling with confidence The good news is that the effort was there. We got some lose balls, which was good. We just have to keep getting better. It was tough missing so many foul shots and layups. If we even make half of the ones we missed, we probably win by 15 or 20 points. We are in the funk offensively. Back-to-backs are tough, especially coming off a loss. At the end of the day, even if it was ugly, we are 1-1 and 5-2 and have yet to play a good game yet. There's a lot of room to improve."

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

• Jahme Ested gave the Marauders a boost at both ends with 12 points on 5-of-7 shooting, four rebounds and three steals. Borden shared team-high honors with three steals. 
• Dade's 12 points put him double figures for the seventh consecutive game. Drew Stover tallied 11 and blocked two shots. 
• With its shooting struggling, Millersville's defense played a key role with 20 points off of 20 Slippery Rock turnovers. Slippery Rock finished with one point off of only five Millersville turnovers. 

GAME NOTES

• Faulkner has scored at least 20 points in four of the last five games and in three in a row. He's also attempted 12 or more foul shots in four of the last six. 

UP NEXT

• Millersville gets a much-needed nine days off, returning to the court on Dec. 12 at home against Goldey-Beacom.