CLARION, Pa. – The Clarion men's basketball team gave the top-ranked team in the PSAC West division everything they could handle on Wednesday, but the Golden Eagles were edged out by IUP by a 69-68 score in Tippin Gymnasium. 
 
With the loss, the Golden Eagles fall to (12-13, 9-10 PSAC), while IUP improved to (19-5, 16-3 PSAC).  The Golden Eagles will be in action again on Saturday, February 13th as they travel to Edinboro to attempt to hold their position in the PSAC playoff race.  
 
Rob Agurs finished with 19 points on 7-of-13 shooting, doing so despite playing much of the game in foul trouble.  De'Ondre Terrell got off to a hot start in the contest and finished with 13 points on 5-of-9 shooting, while Andre' Anthony added 15 points and three assists.  Larry Johnson, Jr. came off the bench to provide an edge on the glass, hauling in a game-high 11 rebounds.
 
The Golden Eagles grabbed the lead in the first half as Terrell paced Clarion with a pair of three-pointers.  The crowd as well as the Golden Eagles' defensive energy forced IUP out of rhythm, with the Crimson Hawks committing 11 turnovers in the first half alone.  Clarion turned those turnovers into 15 points as they held an eight-point lead at the end of the first half.
 
IUP cut the lead to just two points with 8:59 left in the first half, but Agurs responded with a midrange jumper to extend the lead to four points and Cameron Grumley capped the 6-0 run with a three in transition to make it 28-20.  RJ Laugand came in late in the half and helped hold off another Crimson Hawk rally, making two free throws with just a second left on the clock to make it 36-28 at half.
 
Clarion led by as many as 10 in the second half but saw their lead begin to shrink in the final minutes. Indiana, led by a 22-point performance from Brandon Norfleet, minimized the turnovers that plagued them in the first half and swung the momentum in their favor.  The Golden Eagles nearly erased a six-point deficit in the last minute of action but were unable to get all the way over the hump in falling by just a single point.