Box Score

SHIPPENSBURG, Pa. - The Shippensburg men's basketball team was in total control on Wednesday night from Heiges Field House, posting its best field-goal percentage in a game since 1996 and out-rebounding its opponents by 18 in an impressive 74-45 rout of Millersville that saw the Raiders shoot 73 percent in the second half.

Shippensburg (11-11, 3-6 PSAC East) took a seven-point lead at halftime following a last-second three-pointer from sophomore Jaren Gembe, but the Raiders missed four of their first five shots from the field in the second half.

Millersville (8-14, 2-7 PSAC East), which finished with a season-low 45 points, scored four points at the start of the second half on easy buckets from post player Makal Stibbins that forced Shippensburg head coach Dave Springer to call a timeout just 61 seconds into the final period.

To say that the Raiders came out of the ensuing huddle with some momentum would be a bit of an understatement, as a 25-3 run over the next 12 minutes of play sealed the team's most lopsided victory since a 31-point win over Mansfield on Dec. 20, 2006.

Shippensburg finished the contest by making 15 of its final 17 shot attempts and scoring 41 points down the stretch. The only Raider to miss over the final 16 minutes of play was junior guard Stephon Draper, who returned to the lineup after missing two games battling illness.

The Raiders shot 62.8 percent from the field, their most proficient contest in a 357-game span. On Jan. 27, 1996, Shippensburg shot 63.0 percent from the field in a 86-69 victory over Slippery Rock. In that game, current Raider assistant coach Mike Nestor was 4-of-6 from the field and scored 14 points.

It was the first time that Shippensburg shot over 60 percent from the field since the final game of the 2002-03 season, when the Red Raiders shot 62.7 percent from the field in a 98-96 victory over Clarion on Mar. 1, 2003.

Junior forward Brian Oleksiak delivered a virtuoso performance on Wednesday for the Raiders that saw him drawing charges, flying through the lane for offensive rebounds and delivering behind-the-back and no-look passes to his teammates.

In 28 minutes off the bench, Oleksiak was 3-of-3 from the field with nine points to go along with four assists and a career-high 15 rebounds. His vigilance on the glass was noted as Shippensburg out-rebounded the Marauders 39-21

Junior forward Daziah Miller, making his third start of the season, posted a team-high 16 points along with seven rebounds. Sophomore guard Justin Minter had a great all-around game with 11 points, four assists, three rebounds, two blocks and a steal in 31 minutes of action.

Gembe hit three trifectas in the contest and tied his season-high with nine points. Red-shirt freshman guard John Vanderzell capped off the second-half scoring barrage with his first career points on a three-pointer in the final minute.

Stibbins led Millersville with a game-high 22 points but only four Marauders scored in the contest. Millersville was just 7-of-17 from the free-throw line and the four bench players that saw action combined to shoot 0-of-12 from the field.

Shippensburg will return to action on Saturday afternoon in a PSAC Eastern Division road contest from East Stroudsburg. Tip-off from Koehler Fieldhouse is set for 3 p.m.