KUTZTOWN, Pa. – The Shippensburg University men's basketball team went to double overtime for the first time in 12 years on Monday night, but the Raiders could not stave off home-standing Kutztown in dropping a 92-85 decision to the Golden Bears in a Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Eastern Division battle from Keystone Arena.
 
Shippensburg (18-5, 14-4 PSAC) and Kutztown (17-5, 13-5) combined for 12 ties and 14 lead changes in a seesaw battle that featured both teams hit late shots to preserve the game into an extra session. Moe Williams hit a put-back at the buzzer to end regulation, tying the game at 63-63, while senior Justin McCarthur hit a three-pointer with 10 seconds left in the first overtime to tie the game at 76-76.
 
The Raiders were whistled for 24 fouls, tying a season high, and were left without McCarthur, sophomore John Castello and senior Dustin Sleva by the end of the game. The Golden Bears finished 20-of-27 at the free-throw line (74 percent), while the Raiders were 14-of-18 (77 percent).
 
In a game full of runs, it was SU closed first half on 7-0 run to trail by just one point, 33-32, at the intermission. Junior Antonio Kellem hit a three-pointer to open the second half, completing a 10-0 run that put the Raiders on top, 35-33.
 
SU went up seven points, 48-41, with 12:19 remaining, before Kutztown countered with a 13-2 run to lead by four points, 54-50, with 8:41 remaining. The game got to one possession with 7:13 remaining before both teams combined to go scoreless over a 3:38 stretch of play. SU led by four points, 63-59, with 1:48 remaining, but was held scoreless for the remainder of regulation.
 
KU led by five points with 36 seconds remaining in the first overtime. Sleva hit a pair of free throws, and then the Golden Bears missed a pair of free throws. A beautifully-scripted in-bounds play left McCarthur open for three, which he made, and Ethan Ridgeway missed a potential game-winner at the end of the first overtime.
 
Kutztown went 5-of-6 from the field and 6-of-7 from the free-throw line in double overtime, which was simply too much for the Raiders to overcome. SU was within one point, 84-83, with 2:07 remaining, but could not get any closer down the stretch.
 
Sleva finished with 21 points, a season-high 18 rebounds, four assists, a career-high five blocks and a steal in 47 minutes before fouling out. It is his seventh straight double-double, his 17th of the season and the 53rd of his career.
 
McCarthur had 19 points, making five three-pointers, to go along with five assists. Kellem had 17 points and three assists, while Castello finished with 13 points and nine rebounds. Sophomore Na'Quan Council had eight points, four rebounds, two assists and three steals.
 
Freshman Jake Biss played point for the majority of the first half, as senior Clay Conner was whistled for two fouls in the first five minutes of play. Biss totaled four points and two steals. Conner still managed seven assists to go along with a three-pointer. SU tied a season high as a team with 22 assists.
 
Monday's game marked the first double-overtime game for the Raiders since Feb. 11, 2006 – an 83-80 home victory over IUP in which current assistant coach Chuck Davis scored 17 points.
 
Shippensburg will travel to Cheyney on Wednesday for a 7:30 p.m. tip-off with the Wolves from Cope Hall.