ESU-Cheyney Men's Basketball

East Stroudsburg, Pa. - Cheyney's three big men, 6-8 Anthony Frazier, 6-6, 350-pound Hassan Mohammed and 6-10 Kharis Byrd combined for 51 points and 23 rebounds as the Wolves controlled the inside for a 74-62 victory over East Stroudsburg University Saturday night.

The result tightened the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference Eastern Division playoff race with ESU falling to 3-3 and Cheyney improving to 3-4 in the battle for the fourth and last playoff spot. Bloomsburg leads the division at 6-0 followed by West Chester and Millersville both 4-2.

The Warriors had no answer for the Wolves' size and passing inside. Mohammed showed a deft touch for a player of his girth as he made eight of 11 layups and point-blank jumpers and added two free throws for 20 points. He also pulled down eight rebounds and fed off three assists. And this came in only 15 minutes of play.

Frazier, the division's leading scorer with a 18.3-point average, had game highs of 23 points and ten rebounds and also had three assists. He made 8 of 16 field goal attempts, still below his season shooting average of 65 percent, and sank of 7 of 10 free throws.

Byrd added ten points and five boards, connecting on 4 of 7 shots.

The Wolves did not score a basket from beyond eight feet until midway through the second half and they only had two outside hoops the entire game.

ESU had an early 12-6 lead on five points apiece by Gabe Crowley and Shahad Abdur Rahkman before Mohammed entered the game. The king-sized pivotman immediately scored four times from underneath within three minutes to put Cheyney in front, 19-18.

The game stayed close for the rest of the half until Mohammed scored twice more in his first-half total of 13 points as the Wolves took a 30-28 halftime advantage.

The Warriors led for the last time in the game at 39-38 on Wayne Bishop's 3-pointer before Mohammed made his huge presence felt again with two straight hoops to put the Wolves ahead for keeps, 42-39.

ESU was still in contention, trailing 57-51, with 5:25 remaining, but Cheyney scored eight straight points, starting with a jam by Frazier, to wrap up it up at 65-51 with 3:06 left.

Crowley led the Warriors with 20 points while Juwan Justice added 18 and Rahkman 11. ESU kept bombing from outside against the Cheyney zone, but made only eight 3-pointers in 27 attempts. The Warriors had set a school record with 19 3-pointers, including ten by Justice, in beating the Wolves, 75-72, in early January.

Abdur-Rahkman 4 2-5 11, Justice 6 2-4 18, Crowley 9 0-0 20, Kostic 0 0-0 0, Bishop 4 0-0 9, Kelley 0 0-0 0, Collins 0 0-0 0, Wimmer 0 0-1 0, Georges 0 4-4 4. Totals: 23 8-14 62

Byrd 4 2-5 10, Fuller 0 0-0 0, Shabazz 1 0-0 3, Wilson 2 2-2 6, Eason 1 0-0 2, Wade 1 2-4 4, Fowler 2 4-4 8, Frazier 8 7-10 23, Mohammed 8 2-3 18. Totals: 27 19-28 74

Three Point Goals: ESU - Justice 4, Crowley 2, Rahkman, Bishop; Cheyney - Shabazz

Halftime: Cheyney, 30-28