More Millersville Game Coverage

From the Lancaster Intelligencer Journal:

Elizabethtown men knock off Millersville

By JOEL SCHREINER, Sports Writer

Maybe, just maybe, the Blue Jays are a better team than the one coaches picked to finish sixth in the Commonwealth Conference.

On the other hand, it might be the complete opposite scenario for the Marauders, who were picked to finish second in the PSAC East.

Elizabethtown opened some more eyes Wednesday night when it continued its solid start with a 70-65 win over cross-county rival Millersville at Pucillo Gym.

"It's huge," said Blue Jay junior Mike Church, a Solanco grad who scored nine points and grabbed seven rebounds. "The last two times we came down here, we got blown out and didn't play the way we wanted to play."

Marauder coach Fred Thompson, meanwhile, has lost 107 games in 10-plus seasons at Millersville, but called the latest one of the worst.

"We've lost some tough games, but nothing comes close to the emotions I'm going through right now," said Thompson. "It's frustrating. Our guys don't get it. I don't think they understand that they just lost to a Division III team."

That's the same D-3 team that has now beaten them two years in a row and three of the last four, which is a coup for the Jays and coach Bob Schlosser.

"It was a matter of trying to convince our guys that coming over here, that this was a winnable game," explained Schlosser. "We wanted to come down here and make a statement and I think we did."

Keith Fogel led the Jays (5-2) with a game-high 18 points. Joe Flanagan (Lancaster Mennonite) added 11, and Chris Fairbanks (Warwick) chipped in 10. Fogel and Flanagan each hit a pair of 3-pointers in the opening half when E-town established it was not going to be intimidated.

Flanagan drained back-to-back treys to put the Jays up 22-16.

"I started out slow, but my teammates found me at the right time," the sophomore guard said. "It's a great team win. We worked hard as a team."

Elizabethtown led 29-26 at the half, thanks in part to Millersville's 11 turnovers and 0-for-6 shooting beyond the arc.

"The offense was horrendous," Thompson said. "Our guys didn't execute at all. I don't know what they were running out there."

The Marauders went on an 8-0 run to open the second half and grabbed their largest lead of the night, 34-29, with 18:22 to play. But the Blue Jays fought back and regained the lead (39-37) for good on Chris Hill's bucket with 13:10 left.

That, according to Schlosser, was the key to the game.

"They came and jammed it down our throats the first couple of possessions of the second half and took the lead pretty quickly," he said. "But we pushed right back. That was one stretch that we went back on our heels for three minutes, but I thought we came right back at them."

Reggie Bates and Makal Stibbins did their best to keep the Marauders in it. Stibbins scored 15 points and grabbed 10 rebounds, while Bates had 16 points, but hit only 5 of 15 shots.

"We play aggressive defense and I think that frustrated them," Flanagan said of MU's 17 turnovers and 3-for-18 night shooting 3-pointers. "Bates is a great player, but I think we got him to force some shots."

Leading 45-43 with 10:07 left, the Jays reeled off eight straight points, opening up a 10-point cushion. Millersville cut the lead to 64-61, but failed to get any closer and Thompson says he knows why.

"We didn't do anything offensively," he said. "We have a lot of work to do. It's back to the drawing board with this team."

As for the Jays?

"I know we're getting better and that's all I know," Schlosser said. "Where's that going to put us in the next two months? I don't know, but we're getting better."

From the Millersville Website:


Marauders' Rally Falls Short Against Elizabethtown

Box Score

Millersville, Pa. — The Millersville men's basketball team fought an uphill battle all night, but never got to the summit, as its comeback bid fell short in a 70-65 loss to Elizabethtown on Wednesday night at Pucillo Gymnasium.

Points were tough to come by in the first half, as the two schools hooked up on the hardwood for the 93rd time. Neither team capitalized on opportunities in the early going. Millersville (3-3) got early buckets from Reggie Bates and Jason Blake, to take an 8-4 lead just over five minutes into the game, but the Blue Jays (5-2) answered with a jumper from Phil Schaffer to knot the game at eight with 13:45 remaining in the first half. From there, neither team could find the basket in the next 2:43, until the visitors took their first lead of the night on a free throw by Mike Church. A lay-up by Cullen Murray-Kemp put the Marauders back in front 10-9, but the black and gold only got a basket from Rob Coney over the next 3:50.

Elizabethtown's Keith Fogel knocked down a three to give the Blue Jays their largest lead of the first half at 27-20, but the Marauders answered with five consecutive points from Bates to trim the Elizabethtown lead to two with 45 seconds remaining in the first half. The Blue Jays increased the lead slightly and took a 29-26 advantage to the locker room.

The Marauders were not going to lay down against their longest standing non-conference rival. Millersville used contributions from Makal Stibbins, Bates, and Blake to spur an 8-0 run to start the second half and took a 34-29 lead in the process. Elizabethtown answered the Marauders' run with a 6-0 run of its own to take a 35-34 lead with 15:43 to go.

A trey from Murray-Kemp put the home team back in front, but it was the last lead Millersville saw. The Blue Jays used strong ball movement and strong perimeter shooting to run their lead to double figures at 53-43 with 8:26 to play.

The Marauders comeback effort started with a Palmer McDurfee three that cut the deficit to seven, before back-to-back Stibbins' lay-ups cut the lead to three. Millersville would get no closer than three the rest of the way, however, as Elizabethtown converted on its opportunities at the charity stripe down the stretch.

Keith Fogel led the Blue Jays with a game-high 18 points, while Joe Flanagan pitched in with 11. The Maruaders were led by Bates, who put up 16 points before fouling out. Stibbins was once again a strong presence for the Marauders, recording a double-double with 15 points and 10 boards. It was the senior's fourth double-double in six games this season.

Millersville returns to the court Saturday afternoon when it hosts West Virginia State at 2 p.m. in Pucillo Gymnasium. The Marauders will be looking to snap a two-game skid and avenge last Saturday's 86-70 loss at the hands of the Yellow Jackets.