POSTED BY: Eurobasket News
Eral Penn
LIU men's basketball junior Eral Penn (201-F) put up a historic performance Thursday night at the Steinberg Wellness Center, but it wasn't enough to propel his team past Fairleigh Dickinson, as the Knights won the battle, 78-70. Penn had 33 points, 20 rebounds, six steals and two blocks on the night.
He's the first NEC MBB player to have at least 30 pts and 20 rebounds since 1998.
He's the only player nationally with 30 pts/20 rebounds/at least five steals since 2010.
And his 20 rebounds ties for 20th on the NEC all-time single-game record list.
He's the first LIU player to have at least 20 pts and 20 rebounds in a single game since 2012.
FDU would jump out to an early 7-1 lead on the Sharks, putting the home team back on their heels a bit. The Knights would continue to lead LIU for most of the first half, until Penn sparked a run. He and senior Ty Flowers would go on a 13-4 run that spanned three minutes, and gave the Sharks the lead, 25-23 with just over six minutes left in the half. But the Knights took control over the remainder of the period, and would lead LIU, 40-37 at the break.
In the second half, sophomore Alex Rivera would drain a three early on to knot it back up at 40-40, but every time LIU would start to make progress on the Knights, FDU would answer in kind. At the 15-minute mark, the visiting team started a run that would end up being the difference in the game. The Knights outscored LIU, 12-3 over four and a half minutes, going up 61-48. Another 7-2 run shortly after gave FDU their largest lead of the game, 68-52 with 8:21 to play.
Penn would drive LIU in the final eight minutes of action, scoring 10 of the team's 18 points, including back-to-back layups that would bring the Sharks within 10, but it wouldn't be enough, as FDU took the win, 78-70.
Tags : ERAL PENN, LONG ISLAND UNIVERSITY, BRITISH V.ISLANDS BASKETBALL
