Pikeville, Ky. - Shawnee State Men's Basketball took on (13) Pikeville in the quarterfinals of the Mid-South Conference Tournament Saturday afternoon at the Eastern Kentucky Expo Center. From the tip it was a battle of physicality, especially in the final minutes that ultimately resulted in a Pikeville win 79-74 over SSU.
Shawnee State entered the game having defeated Pikeville in both regular season contests between the two squads. Pikeville, ranked 13 in the country and seeded at No. 2 in the tournament, avenged the losses and will move on the the semifinals.
In the loss, Shawnee State shot 48.3% from the field, connecting on 28 of 58 shots. The Bears would go without a three in the first half but picked up from deep in the second draining six of 12 threes for 50%. Free throws proved important in the second half, SSU went 12 of 18 from the line for 66.7%. The Bears forced 18 turnovers from UPike while giving up 16.
Pikeville hit 30 of 65 shots from the field for 46.2%. From three the Bears shot an impressive 50% on eight of 16 attempts. UPike outrebounded SSU 38 to 29.
Juwan Grant (SR/Baltimore, Maryland) led the Bears with a monster second half, dropping 20 points including five of nine from beyond the arc. Tim Biakapia (JR/Germantown, Maryland) was the second leading scorer, finishing with 18 points and five rebounds EJ Onu (SO/Cleveland, Ohio) had 13 points, six rebounds while Justin Johnson (JR/Cincinnati, Ohio) put up 12 points and six boards.
In the first half SSU got out on top early, building a 8-2 lead before Pikeville would surge offensively. Over the course of five minutes, Pikeville went on a 13-0 run and led 21-10 after the first 10 minutes. At the end of the first half, Pikeville outscored Shawnee 13-4 and led 41-21 headed into halftime.
Pikeville continued dominating offensive play for the opening four minutes of the second half, with Goana hitting his fourth three pointer of the contest. With just under 15 minutes to go, SSU would break out to within single digits trailing 51-43 with 14:52 remaining. Good defensive play from UPike held Shawnee scoreless for the next few minutes allowing Pikeville to extend their lead to 10.
With under five minutes left, Juwan Grant embarked on an incredible run scoring eight straight points including back to back three pointers to bring the Bears within two points. At the 4:53 mark, SSU trailed 68-66. In the next two minutes it was a struggle for momentum as the Bears continued to battle. Grant splashed another three to make it 72-70 with 2:08 remaining but SSU could not get over the hump. UPike would make it a two possesion game once more before sealing the deal with free throws in the final minute. UPike would get the win 79-74.
The loss marks the end of the 2018-19 season for Shawnee State Men's Basketball. They close the season with an overall record of 14-16, 5-9 in the Mid-South Conference. Pikeville moves on to the semifinals on Sunday, with an overall record of 22-7, 9-5 in conference play.
