MEN’S BASKETBALL

The 6th-seeded HU men’s basketball team escaped Hutzell Athletic Center with an 80-74 win over 3rd-seeded Saint Francis (23-8) Wednesday night in quarterfinal action of the Crossroads League tournament.

“Tonight was a great team win,” said Coach Kory Alford. “I thought we played tough on both ends of the floor and had great composure down the stretch. USF is a great team, especially on the offensive end, so to beat them on the road is a great accomplishment.

“I thought our crowd was incredible and provided us great energy all night.”

The win sends the Foresters to the semifinals of the tourney to take on #2 Marian on Saturday.

The Forester constituent had to wait over a decade for a win at USF as Huntington’s last win at the Hut dates back to 2011 when they tallied an 87-84 decision over the Cougars.

Tonight’s victory comes on the heels of Alford and crew knocking off the then-ranked #15 Cougars, 88-74, just a few weeks back in Platt Arena. HU is 2-1 against their neighbors to the northeast this season.

As is always the case, the rivalry between these two squads was palpable as they traded blows all night with a few runs mixed throughout. It was a one or two possession game in the first half with the only exception favoring the Cougars when they built a 33-25 cushion with eight minutes left in the period.

Traditional three-point plays by Caleb Middlesworth, Hank Pulver and Zach Goodline within a two-and-a-half minute spurt fueled an HU offense that would go on to claim a 47-42 lead by halftime.

Goodline got his team off to a great start after intermission by scoring seven of Huntington’s first nine points to take what proved the game’s largest lead of the night at 56-44 less than three minutes into the frame.

To be expected from one of the best offenses in the nation, the #16 Cougars, ranked ninth among their NAIA peers in points per game, had plenty of time and firepower to counter. Down by ten with 14 minutes to go, USF rattled off 13 straight points to reclaim the lead at 63-60 by the nine-minute mark.

It was Peyton West to the rescue. The 6-1 guard tracked down eight rebounds over the course of the night with none bigger than an offensive board that he cashed in for two points to snap USF’s run. It sparked a turnaround for Huntington that included Middlesworth’s fifth three of the game with five minutes to go that gave the guests a permanent lead of 70-67.

HU grew their advantage to seven shortly after and then staved off the Cougars over the final four minutes to claim the upset.

Middlesworth and Goodline poured in 25 and 24 points respectively to pace Alford’s crew. While the pair combined for over 60 percent of HU’s offense, there were a lot of other moving parts that factored into the win.

Lane Sparks and Ben Humrichous each calmly sank a pair of free throws in the final 16 seconds to seal the win. Humrichous was the X factor defensively. The lanky 6-8 sophomore defended the paint with his six swats.

“I thought a lot of guys stepped up tonight,” noted Alford. “Zach and Caleb provided steady scoring throughout the game. I thought Peyton made big plays all night and his rebounding was huge.

“Ben and Lane made clutch free throws which for young players is great to see. I was also incredibly proud of Ben’s defensive effort. It was a game-changer.”

David Ejah posted 25 points and ten rebounds to lead Saint Francis. Antwaan Cushingberry added 20 points and 11 boards while Jalan Mull tossed in 14.

With tonight’s win, the Foresters move to 22-9 on the year.