BRIDGEPORT, Conn. – It was a much-needed conference win for Post University Men's Basketball to get back on track on Tuesday night against the University of Bridgeport on the road. Coming into the game on a two-game skid and having fallen out of the top 25 in all national polls, the Eagles used a 36-point second half and held off a late rally by the Purple Knights to escape with a 61-58 victory, moving to 4-2 in conference play this season.

THE BASICS

Post University 61, University of Bridgeport 58

Post University (13-4, 4-2 CACC)

University of Bridgeport (7-11, 1-6 CACC)

HOW IT HAPPENED
An 11-for-35 (31.5%) first half for the Eagles coupled by an 0-for-8 performance from three by the Purple Knights, kept the game close for both sides throughout the entirety of the first half. Junior forward Deng Deang had the hot hand for Post with nine points on 4-for-8 shooting while junior guard Caleb Jacobs and senior guard Jayden Iturmendi scored eight each for Bridgeport with a combined 7-for-13 half to account for over half of the Purple Knight points.
 
Neither team would get much of an upper hand in the first 20 minutes until a 5-0 run by Post put them ahead 25-20 following a three from junior guard Cape Holden and layup by sophomore guard Tre Duncan with 4:34 left. However, that would be it for the first-half scoring by the Eagles as Bridgeport went on a 10-0 run to end it with Jacobs accounting for six of those points. Getting outrebounded 23-19 and outscored in the paint by a gaudy 26-12 margin would lead to Post trailing by five heading into the locker room, 30-25.
 
The run would continue into the second half for the Purple Knights, ballooning to 15 straight points as they went ahead by double digits, 35-25, with 19:04 remaining in regulation following a Jacobs layup. But the Post response would come in the nick of time as they quickly got themselves back into the game with an 11-0 run over a four-minute stretch to take the lead by one, 36-35. With the game tied at 38 all, senior forward Derrick Thomas II's layup would give the Eagles the lead for good despite repeated attempts by the Purple Knights to cut down their deficit.
 
Up by seven, 59-52, with 2:28 left, it looked as though victory would be all but certain for Post after a dunk by Deang before a 6-0 run by Bridgeport quickly put the Eagles in danger of losing a third straight game. Layups by graduate forward Sam DeSouza and senior guard Tim Dawson around a pair of Jacobs' free throws made it a one-point game, 59-58, with 10 seconds left.
 
Two seconds later, Deang would hit his two free throw attempts to bring the Eagle lead back up to three points and gave Bridgeport one last chance to tie. Dawson would pull up in front of the three-point line and attempt a shot that would have put his team down by one still, but it would rim out and Post would hold on for the 61-58 win.  

BY THE NUMBERS

• Bol Akot extended his double-digit point streak to 10 straight games after going 3-for-9 from the floor while hitting 4-of-8 free throws for a total of 11 points on the evening
• After struggling in the last two games and scoring only 18 points combined in that stretch, Deng Deang scored a team-high 15 points on 5-of-10 shooting
• As a team, Post shot only 38.3% from the floor and were under 40% overall for the fifth time this season – When shooting under 40% this season, the Eagles are now 3-2 with the two losses coming against Southern New Hampshire and Daemen
• Post University has now won four straight games against Bridgeport on the road and are 6-5 overall away from home against their CACC rival  

WHO'S NEXT
Post University comes home for the first time in 10 days when they take on Georgian Court University on Saturday afternoon at 3:00 PM inside the Drubner Center. The Eagles are 9-0 all-time against the Lions and have won all but two of those matchups by double digits.