Jan. 27, 2007

Final Stats

Shippensburg, Pa. - Rock interim head coach Jamal Palmer and his Green and White gang threw a scare into Palmer's former boss Saturday afternoon, but was unable to record the win.

After trailing by 11 points (57-46) with just over six minutes left to play, The Rock closed the game with a 13-2 run.

The comeback effort came up two points shy, though, as hosting Shippensburg held on for a 61-59 win in Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference-Western Division action.

The loss was the fifth straight for SRU, which saw its overall record fall to 4-15 and its PSAC-West mark drop to 1-3, but also marked the sixth time this season The Rock came oh-so-close to chalking up a "W."

Saturday's loss was the fourth two-point setback of the season for The Rock, which also has suffered a pair of overtime losses this winter.

Shippensburg and head coach Dave Springer, under whom Palmer served as an assistant coach in the 2004-05 season, improved its overall record to 12-11 and its PSAC-West mark to 3-2.

The Rock attack was led by Glenn Reepmeyer, who recorded his seventh "double-double" of the season with 15 points and 11 rebounds.

Kenny Smith was SRU's leading scorer, though, with 17 points.

Chuck Davis, the reigning PSAC-West "Player of the Year," scored a game-high 24 points for Shippensburg.

The Rock led for a good portion of the opening half and enjoyed a seven-point (27-20) lead with 1:30 left before halftime, only to see Shippensburg score the final four points of the stanza to trim the lead to three, 27-24, at intermission.

Shippensburg scored 22 of the first 29 points in the second half to take a 12-point, 46-34, lead at the midway mark of the second half but saw the momentum slowly slip away.

A pair of free throws by Kenny Smith with 1:12 left to play cut the lead to only two points, but proved to be the final points of the game.

Each team missed a field goal attempt in the final minute of play.

The Rock will seek to end its losing skid on Monday, when it travels to division-leading California U. of Pa. for an 8 p.m. game.

SRU returns home on Wednesday to entertain Clarion in an 8 p.m. PSAC-West game in Morrow Field House.