MANCHESTER, N.H. – It was an unusual day for Post University Men's Basketball as travel issues during their trek up to Southern New Hampshire University caused a roughly 2 1/2 hour delay to the start of the contest on Saturday afternoon and also forced the Eagles to wear the Penmen's road uniforms for the game.

Despite the adversity Post faced entering the game, senior forward Deng Deang tallied his fourth double-double of the season, going for 20 points and 10 rebounds while graduate forward Harrison Warnock nearly had his third double-double with 20 points and nine rebounds. But shooting woes to the tune of a 33.8% clip from the field and 15.4% (4-for-26) finish from three-point range would find the Eagles on the losing end of their matchup with the Penmen, 72-61, heading into the winter break. 

THE BASICS

Post University 61, Southern New Hampshire University 72 

Post University (7-6)

Southern New Hampshire University (7-3)

HOW IT HAPPENED
Junior guard Ray Daniels scored the first basket of the day for either side before the Eagles went on a 7-0 run behind five points from Deang and a jumper from senior guard Bol Akot to take an early five-point lead, 7-2. That would be the largest lead that Post had in the first half and Daniels, who had 12 points in the first half, tied the game up at nine all as part of a responding 9-2 run for the Penmen that saw them take the lead back by two, 11-9.

Warnock's three with 11:13 left in the half tied the game up at 14 all and marked the last time in the opening half in which the two teams would be even. From there, four straight points by Southern New Hampshire helped them maintain as much as an eight-point lead, 24-16, before Deang and Akot looked to swing the momentum back in Post's favor to end the half. With back-to-back baskets and an and-one opportunity for Akot that was missed, the Eagles were back within four before junior guard Royce Williams drained a three to end the half, putting the Penmen ahead by seven, 31-24.

Deang led Post at the break with nine points on 4-for-10 shooting and six rebounds followed by Warnock at five points and four rebounds in a half where the Eagles shot 11-for-32 (34.4%) while making just 2-of-13 (15.4%) three-point attempts. Three players beyond Daniels had five points each for Southern New Hampshire, who went 12-for-28 (42.9%) from the field in Williams, senior forward Paul Greene, and senior guard Kurtis Henderson. 

Right out of the gate in the second half, a three from senior forward Derrick Grant Jr. boosted the lead for the Penmen up to 10 points and it would remain at double digits for much of the frame until the 5:27 mark when Warnock made one of his two free throws to cut their deficit down to nine, 57-48. Down 12 points following a Royce Williams three with 3:39 remaining, a 5-0 run started by freshman forward Anthony Chinn got Post the closest they would be the rest of the way, down seven points.

However, a three by Daniels, who finished the game with 23 points on 7-for-13 shooting, with 2:20 to go would be the dagger as the Penmen ran away with the game en route to a 72-61 win on Saturday. As a team, Southern New Hampshire was 7-for-17 (41.2%) from three and went 25-for-52 (48.1%) overall in the game which included a blistering 54.1% shooting performance in the second half. 

BY THE NUMBERS

• Deng Deang tallied his second straight double-double  and fourth overall this season after scoring 20 points and tallying 10 rebounds while shooting 7-for-20 to tie with Harrison Warnock for the lead in points 
• Harrison Warnock narrowly missed his third double-double of the season with 20 points on 7-for-10 shooting with nine rebounds against Southern New Hampshire today 
• This season, Post University is 5-0 when leading at halftime and now 1-6 when trailing at halftime 
• Post University is now 1-12 all-time against Southern New Hampshire University with the lone win coming during the 2022-23 season on the road at the Penmen, 71-61

WHO'S NEXT
Post University is off until the new year when they will face off against Holy Family University in a road conference matchup scheduled for 3:00 PM on January 4th, 2025. The Eagles have won seven straight games against the Tigers dating back to the 2016-17 season, scoring 100 points twice in those affairs while winning the latest one, 78-59, at home last season.