SHEPHERDSTOWN, W.Va. – A pair of second-half scoring runs by the home team was too much to overcome for the Shippensburg University men's basketball team on Tuesday night from the Butcher Athletic Center, as the Red Raiders dropped a 79-67 decision to regional rival Shepherd.

An even first half resulted in a 32-31 lead for the Rams at intermission. The second half was anything but even, as the two teams opened the frame by exchanging big scoring runs. Three minutes into the final frame, Shepherd went on an 8-0 run to build a 12-point lead at the 15:34 mark.

Shippensburg answered with a 13-3 run over the next five minutes to bring its deficit down to just two points, 50-48, with 10:14 remaining. However, the Rams responded with a 16-2 run over the next four minutes of play to take control of the game.

Junior Dane Lauber had another great effort off the bench, finishing with a team-high 18 points and eight rebounds. Lauber was 8-of-8 from the free-throw line and has totaled 29 points and 22 rebounds over the last two games.

Fellow junior Craig Van Scyoc added 17 points, shooting 6-of-10 from the field including three 3-pointers. Van Scyoc also had five rebounds. Sophomore point guard Lamar Jackson had 15 points and three assists.

Shepherd (3-5) got a game-high 25 points from Chad Moore, who shot 8-of-13 from the floor and made all nine of his free-throw attempts. The Rams had four starters finish in double figures and out-rebounded the Red Raiders by a 31-24 margin.

Shippensburg heads into the winter break with a 3-5 record. SU returns to action on Monday, January 3 with a road game at Edinboro. Tip-off is set for 7:30 p.m.