(Posted February 11, 2011)

HUNTINGDON, Pa. -- Juniata College men's basketball put together two solid quarters to snap a six-game conference losing streak, beating Moravian College, 79-67, Friday night at the Kennedy Sports + Recreation Center.

The last time the two teams matched up on January 15, the Eagles found their groove in the second half after trailing in the first half to beat the Greyhounds, 53-31 in Johnston Hall. That game marked Juniata's (11-12, 4-8 Landmark) last win heading into Friday night.

This time Juniata held a lead at the break and was able to maintain that momentum in the second half to put together a complete performance.

Juniata jumped out to a 6-0 lead on the Greyhounds off of two free throws by Alex Raymond (Hollidaysburg, Pa./Hollidaysburg) and layups by Dan Sekulski (Douglassville, Pa./Daniel Boone Area). D.J. Strayhorn scored the next seven points in the game to put Moravian up 7-6 a little over four minutes into the game.

The rest of the first half was back and forth, with neither team leading by more than three points until foul shots by Raymond put the Eagles up 36-32 with 1:37 left in the half. Raymond sunk another two free throws and Jeremy Hays' (McMechen, W.Va./John Marshall) layup with four ticks left in the half gave Juniata a 40-32 lead at the break.

Sekulski hit a jumper one minute into the second half to bring the Juniata lead to ten. Moravian stormed back and tied the game, 49-49, with 10:24 remaining on a Strayhorn three-pointer. Two buckets a piece for Knowles and Hays sent Juniata on an 8-0 run and gave them a lead that they would not relinquish.

The Eagles had their largest lead of the game 72-55 with a little less than three minutes remaining.

Sekulski led all scorers with 25 points, connecting on 11-of-17 from the field. Raymond added 18 points, including going 10-of-11 from the foul line. Hays rounded out the double-digit scorers for the Eagles adding 14 points. Nate Higgins (St. Mary's, Pa./Elk County Catholic) pulled down ten rebounds in the victory.

The Eagles shot 53.1 percent from the field for the game, while holding Moravian to 40.9 percent. Juniata was also consistent from behind the arc, connecting on six three-pointers, while shooting 50.0 percent from long range. The Eagles committed 16 turnovers and tallied 37 rebounds.

Moravian's D.J. Strayhorn scored a team-high 20 points, while Marcus Hardy grabbed seven rebounds. The Greyhounds pulled down 33 boards, while committing 15 turnovers. As a team, they shot 50.0 percent in the first half, but dropped to 34.2 percent in the second half.

Juniata will look for another Landmark Conference win tomorrow, Feb. 12, as it hosts the University of Scranton at 4:00 p.m. in the Kennedy Sports + Recreation Center.

-30-

Our readers respond...

Be the first to provide a response.

Contact April Feagley at feaglea@juniata.edu or (814) 641-3131 for more information.