JOHNSTOWN, Pa. — After rallying to grab multiple leads early in the second half, Pitt-Johnstown couldn't withstand a late Millersville push and fell 87-68 in a PSAC crossover matchup on Friday night in the Sports Center.

The Mountain Cats dropped to 9-4 (3-2 PSAC).

Junior forward Baden Forup paced Pitt-Johnstown with a team-high 19 points, five rebounds and three steals. Jay Rose provided 16 points, three rebounds, two assists and two steals. Adam Bilinsky pitched in 14 points, a game-high five steals and four assists. Nick Watts recorded nine points and grabbed a team-high six rebounds in 19 minutes off the bench.

In a game that featured eight lead changes and six ties, both teams traded blows during the first few minutes of the second half. 

Forup's conventional three-point play put the Mountain Cats up 43-42. A few minutes later, Rose scored on a layup to give Pitt-Johnstown a 49-46 edge. However, the Marauders ran off 12 straight points over the next three minutes to take the lead for good.

The Mountain Cats finished 50% (24 of 48) from the floor, 36.4% (4 of 11) from beyond the 3-point arc and 76.2% (16 of 21) at the free-throw line.

Bilinsky's three-point play helped Pitt-Johnstown storm out to a 10-4 lead to start. Forup then gave the Mountain Cats their largest lead of the game on a dunk that pushed it to 14-7 at the 15:27 mark.

After falling behind 27-18, Watts capped an extended 16-4 run with a three that put the Mountain Cats on top 34-31 with less than four and a half minutes before the break. Watts then connected on a jumper with 55 seconds left as Pitt-Johnstown went into the locker room down 40-38.

Saraj Ali netted a game-high 26 points for the Marauders, who moved to 8-3 (3-1 PSAC).

Pitt-Johnstown will host Shepherd at 3 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 3 in the Sports Center.