WEST CHESTER, Pa. – The Shippensburg University men's basketball team was unable to overcome the hot shooting of Mercyhurst in the second half Saturday in a 79-68 loss to the Lakers, eliminating SU in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Tournament in the semifinal round at Hollinger Field House in West Chester.
 
Shippensburg (20-9) led by six at halftime, but the Lakers shot 53.3 percent in the second half, including an impressive 9-of-13 on three-point field goals.
 
The beginning of each half was almost exactly the opposite as SU began the game on a 21-7 run, while Mercyhurst started the second half on a 25-10 spurt. The run by the Lakers pushed them in front 56-47 with 11:25 to go.
 
However, SU fought back by outscoring Mercyhurst 13-6 over the next seven minutes, including a pair of four-point plays by senior Jay Hardy and sophomore Dustin Sleva.
 
Sleva's three-pointer with a foul shot made it a 62-60 game in favor of Mercyhurst with 4:30 remaining. Although SU was unable to take the lead, Hardy again brought the Raiders within two – at 67-65 – with his fifth three-pointer of the afternoon at the 2:51 mark.
 
But from there, the Lakers finished the game on a 12-3 run as reserve guard Gerrae Williams hit three-pointers on back-to-back possessions to help Mercyhurst pull away. Overall, the Lakers outscored the Raiders 37-4 in bench points.
 
Shippensburg was led by another fine performance from Sleva, who finished with 24 points on 7-of-14 shooting and nine rebounds in a game-high 38 minutes. Hardy's five three-pointers were a season-high as he totaled 16 points.
 
Freshman Antonio Kellem was the third and final Raider in double figures as he scored 12 points and grabbed three rebounds. Senior Tony Ellis was again key on the glass, grabbing 12 rebounds to go along with seven points.
 
The Raiders, who shot 50 percent (11-of-22) from the field in the first half, made 10-of-27 attempts from the floor in the final 20 minutes (37 percent).
 
It is not guaranteed that Shippensburg's season is over as the NCAA Division II Tournament field will be announced Sunday. The Raiders were ranked 10th in the most recent Atlantic Regional rankings. The Top 8 teams from the region make the tournament.
 
If the Raiders' season has concluded, the team has tied for the second-most wins in school history with 20. Saturday marked the first time since the 2005-2006 season that SU was in the PSAC Semifinals.
 
"I told our guys to walk out of here with their heads held high," Shippensburg head coach Chris Fite said. "I feel like we've really done ourselves and the school proud this year and we've really raised the bar for Shippensburg basketball."
 
The Division II selection show will air Sunday night at 10:30 p.m. on ncaa.com.