EDINBORO, Pa. – Making their first appearance in the PSAC Tournament since the 2009-10 season, the sixth-seeded Golden Eagles defeated the third-seeded Edinboro Fighting Scots 83-69 at McComb Fieldhouse on Saturday.
Clarion (14-15) advances and will take on the second-seeded Mercyhurst Lakers on Tuesday, March 1 in Erie. Tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m.
Andre' Anthony tied for the game-high with 24 points on 7-of-13 shooting, including a sterling 6-of-11 mark from three-point range, while also dishing out five assists.
Rob Agurs had his team-best eighth double-double of the season with 23 points and 11 rebounds and B.J. Andrews had 13 points and six boards.
Clarion shot 62.5 percent from the field in the second half as they came back from an eight-point halftime deficit to stun the Fighting Scots at home. Edinboro led by 13 points with 3:12 left to go in the first half but the Golden Eagles turned the tables fairly decisively, outscoring the Fighting Scots 51-29 in the final 20 minutes of action.
The Fighting Scots came out in a zone defense to open the second half but the Golden Eagles countered, with Anthony draining a three from the right side on Clarion's first offensive possession and Agurs sank two free throws on the next trip to make it 40-37. Anthony tied the score at 40 with another zone-busting three, this time knocking down the shot on the fast break to knot it up at the 18:04 mark.
Edinboro countered with a 6-0 run but Agurs cut it to 46-43 with a three-pointer. The senior wing struck again at the 15:35 mark, snaking his way through the defense to make it 46-45 with a layup, and Anthony tied it again at 48-48 with a clutch three-pointer. Agurs scored on back-to-back possessions to put Clarion ahead as the Golden Eagles used a 12-2 run to take the 52-48 advantage.
Clarion's lead reached seven points after Agurs converted an old-fashioned three-point play, tipping in a lob with one second left on the shot clock and drawing contact in the process to make it 60-53.
Tim Gill did the same at the 7:45 mark, giving the Golden Eagles a double-digit lead for the first time in the game. Agurs notched a three-pointer from the left corner to make it 66-53 with 6:47 left, and Andrews hit a jumper from the elbow to make it 69-53 with 5:11 left. Clarion kept the Fighting Scots at arm's length the rest of the way to record their first PSAC Tournament win in six years.
The Golden Eagles opened the game on a 6-2 run, with Agurs jumping a pass from Henri Wade-Chatman and streaking the length of the floor for a bucket to punctuate the opening salvo. Michael Beck cut it to 6-5 with a three-pointer, but Andrews drilled a contested trey from the right wing to respond for the Golden Eagles. Edinboro fired off a 17-3 run to build a double-digit lead but Gill ended a nearly four-minute drought with a layup in the paint at the 12:14 mark.
Andrews and
Justin Grant hit three-pointers in rapid succession to pull Clarion back to within 23-17, but Sheldon Brogdon added a three-pointer of his own at the 7:14 mark in response and Edinboro built their lead back up to 12 points. Andrews ripped the ball from Mikael Anderson at the 4:12 mark and streaked down the court, drawing an intentional foul on the fast break and cutting it to 11 points with a free throw make. Anderson committed another gaffe just a few minutes later, missing a dunk; Anthony collected the rebound and raced down the floor for the transition bucket, making it 34-25.
De'Ondre Terrell cut the Fighting Scots' lead to eight points with a make at the 1:20 mark, and Anthony made a trey with 37.5 seconds left to again make it a two-possession game. Edinboro tacked on before the break, though, and held a 40-32 advantage at halftime.
