SELINSGROVE, Pa. – Juniata College men's basketball made a late attempt to catch host Susquehanna University in Saturday night's regular season finale at Houts Gymnasium, but the Eagles comeback bid fell short in an 81-71 Landmark Conference loss to the Crusaders.
The Juniata (17-8, 9-5 Landmark) loss means the Eagles will return to Selinsgrove on Wednesday, Feb. 22, as the No. 3 seed for the Landmark Conference Men's Basketball Tournament, and will face second-seeded Susquehanna (15-9, 9-5 Landmark) in the semifinals. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. at Houts Gymnasium.
Sophomore Kevin Stapleton (Indiana, Pa./Indiana) paced Juniata offensively with 14 points, eight of that in the second half when the Eagles outscored the Crusaders, 46-38. Jeremy Hays (McMechen, W.Va./John Marshall) and Brian Scholly (State College, Pa./State College Area) added 12 and 11 points respectively off the bench, while Alex Raymond (Hollidaysburg, Pa./Altoona Area) also chipped in with 11.
Hays also produced much of his offense in the second half, netting 10 in the second stanza on 4-of-7 shooting from the floor.
Senior Dan Sekulski (Douglassville, Pa./Daniel Boone Area) finished with nine points, and dished out a team-high six assists. Nate Higgins (St. Mary's, Pa./Elk County Catholic) hauled down seven rebounds to lead Juniata on the glass.
Susquehanna had three players in double figures, led by Spenser Spencer with 27 points on 7-of-18 shooting. J.T. Wilson finished with 18, while Harley Sellinger totaled 17 points.
An 8-0 Susquehanna run in the first half helped break open a three-point game, allowing the Crusaders to grab a 24-13 lead by the 9:03 mark of the frame. Susquehanna's lead reached 18 just before the intermission, as Spencer hit a 3-pointer with five seconds showing on the clock.
Susquehanna held onto a commanding double-digit lead throughout much of the second half, and led by 17, 57-40, following another Spencer trey at the 11:41 mark.
Juniata outscored the Crusaders 11-1 over the next five minutes, with Hays starting the Eagles' rally with a jumper to cut the score to 57-42.
After a Scholly 3-pointer with 8:01 remaining trimmed the Susquehanna lead to 58-48, Hays brought the margin to single digits with his jumper 37 seconds later. A missed trey by Spencer was rebounded by Scholly, and a Crusader foul sent Sekulski to the line – where he connected on the second of two shots to pull Juniata to within seven, 58-51, with 6:39 to play.
The Crusader lead was cut to six points, 61-55, barely a minute later on a Sekulski layup, but the Eagles would get no closer.
Spencer answered the Sekulski bucket with a trey to stretch Susquehanna's lead to nine points, and the Crusaders again led by 13 points, 69-56, with 2:38 remaining following a Mike Perillo conventional three-point play.
Susquehanna went 11-of-12 at the free-throw line over the final two minutes to preserve the win.
Wednesday's Landmark semifinal appearance will be Juniata's first since the 2007-08 season, when the Eagles also tangled with the Crusaders in Selinsgrove. The Eagles won that semifinal 77-49 at Houts Gymnasium, just four days after suffering a 60-55 loss at Susquehanna to close out the regular season.
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