HUNTINGDON, Pa. – Juniata men's basketball secured its place in the 2013 Landmark Conference Tournament with a 74-63 win over Susquehanna University Wednesday night at the Kennedy Sports+Recreation Center. Juniata (16-8) is now 8-5 in league play and clinched the No. 3 seed for the tournament.
"I'm really proud of the overall effort," said head coach Greg Curley. "I think we're the fifth or sixth team in the history of the school to ever go to the playoffs. Hopefully we can get used to it. But I'm really proud of the guys. I thought we really came out and stepped up defensively. That's what we really wanted to do."
Juniata shot 51-percent from the floor while holding the Crusaders to just 21-percent from behind the arch and 36-percent overall.
All five Juniata starters ended in double-figures. The Eagles were led by junior Jeremy Hays (McMechen, W. Va./John Marshall) who finished with a team-high 15 points after spending 39 minutes on the floor. Senior Nate Higgins (St. Mary's, Pa./Elk County Catholic) made 7-of-9 from the floor en route to a season-high 14 points. And junior Kevin Stapleton (Indiana, Pa./Indiana) and senior Alex Raymond (Hollidaysburg, Pa./Altoona) picked up 13 and 10 points, respectively. Stapleton finished with a game and career-high six assists.
Junior Brian Scholly (State College, Pa./State College) earned his second double-double of the season. He finished with 11 points and a game-high 10 rebounds.
"I think that's terrific," Curley said of the starters numbers. "I think if you look back, whenever we've done that this year, we've won the game. The bigger thing is [Lucas] Mellott and [Pat] Cassidy really played great defense. Those guys continue to improve. We just put ourselves in a position to get some opportunities coming our way. I'm proud of the guys."
Susquehanna was led by Brandon Hedley who finished with 23 points.
Juniata hosts Drew University for its final home game of the season in a double-header with the women this Saturday, Feb. 16.
"It's senior night," said Curley. "We need to get this thing done and celebrate our seniors the right way. We just need to play well going into the playoffs. For us, it's really just a chance to get better."
The Eagles are 14-8 all-time against Drew. They won their last meeting 59-51 back on January 12 and have won three straight against the Rangers. The men will play at 7 p.m. following the women's annual Pink Game. Juniata will be honoring breast cancer survivors with free admission to the women's game beginning at 4:30 p.m. where they will be given a complimentary gift bag while supplies last.
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