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WATERBURY, Conn. – The Post University men's basketball team dropped its fourth-straight game on Saturday afternoon 67-66 at home non-conference foe LIU-Post. Seniors Derrick Strong (St. Louis, Mo.) and Effrin Ellison (Waterbury, Conn.) led the Eagles with 17 points each. Post falls to 1-5 on the season.
 
The Eagles made a season-high 12 three-pointers on the day, led by Ellison who was 5-for-6 from distance.  Senior Devin Willis (Seattle, Wash.) was made three from behind the arc on his way to 11 points. Senior Jerry Cummings (Queens, N.Y.) added seven points, eight rebounds, and two steals.
 
Post took a 32-28 lead into the break, but a 12-5 run by the Pioneers to begin the second half tied the game at 37-37. LIU-Post led throughout most of the period and had its largest lead at 60-54 with 6:11 remaining in the game.
 
Junior Mike Manning (Philadelphia, Pa.) started a 7-0 Post run with a put-back dunk off a Willis miss that gave the Eagles a 61-60 lead with 4:34 left. Strong made a layup while getting fouled and hit the free throw and Cummings hit a shot off a dish from Strong during the stretch.
 
Neither team would lead by more than two the remainder of the way. Willis made a jumper from with 1:30 left to give the Eagles a 66-65 lead. LIU-Post missed two shots its next time down the court and Willis grabbed the rebound for Post. The Eagles called a timeout with 0:38 remaining.
 
Post missed a shot on its next possession and the Pioneers grabbed the rebound and pushed the ball up the court. Vaughn Allen made a layup with 0:12 left to put LIU-Post in front 67-66. Strong missed a layup with 1.1 left. After a missed free-throw by the Pioneers, Strong's full-court heave was off target.
 
The teams were even throughout the beginning of the first half and were tied at 11-11 after Ellison hit from distance to start a 13-0 Eagles' run with 11:41 left in the period. The Pioneers turned the ball over on five straight possessions, which put the Eagles in front 21-11 at 9:23. Ellison had six points and Manning had four points during the stretch.
 
LIU-Post narrowed the deficit to just one at 27-26 with 3:26 left. Post pushed the lead back up to four before the half.
 
The two teams were even at 18 turnovers each, but the Eagles held a slim 20-19 advantage in points off turnovers. The Pioneers dominated the boards 40-26 and outscored Post in the paint 32-14. The Eagles bench outscored LIU-Post 31-16.
 
Post is back in action on Saturday, Dec. 7 at Wilmington. Game time is set for 3 p.m.