Box Score

MECHANICSBURG, Pa. – Junior Michael Rudy (Danville, Pa./Danville Area) dropped in a putback as time expired to lift the Lycoming College men’s basketball team to a 67-66 win over Messiah College in a battle of third-place teams at the Brubaker Auditorium on Wednesday night, Jan. 30.
 
After a pair of free throws from Zac Hoy with 6.7 seconds left gave Messiah a one-point lead, the Warriors got the ball to sophomore Chris Foreman (Union, N.J./Union), who, already with a career-high 25 points, brought the ball up the court and drew the defense. Foreman found senior Jerald Williams (Riverdale, Md./Bladensburg), who lifted a jumper that dropped off the rim into the waiting hands of Rudy, who dropped in the tip-in at the buzzer.
 
“Mike has done a wonderful job,” Lycoming head coach Guy Rancourt said. “He is getting better and better every time. He is relentless. He works his tail off. He always looks tired, but he seems to get better when it matters.”
 
The win helped save the Warriors (14-6 overall, 8-5 Commonwealth) from another difficult conference loss, as they held a five-point lead with 1:35 left after a layup from senior Ihsaan Davis (Jamaica, N.Y./Christ the King) on a putback. After a block by Rudy, a turnover gave Messiah (11-8 overall, 7-6 Commonwealth) the ball back and Christyan DeVan hit a layup with 1:01 left. After another steal by Messiah, Brad Bolen connected on a layup to make it a one-point game with 52 seconds left.
 
The Falcons let the Warriors use most of the ensuing shot clock before Foreman took a shot with 23 seconds left and Williams grabbed the rebound before he was fouled. However, Williams missed the front end of a 1-and-1 and Hoy was fouled with seven seconds left, setting up Rudy’s heroics.
 
The win gives Lycoming a one-game advantage on Messiah, the defending conference champions, and leaves it in a third-place tie with Arcadia (13-7 overall, 8-5 Commonwealth), two games behind the league-leading Albright and Alvernia, who each have identical 10-3 league marks after Albright’s 57-54 win over the Crusaders on Wednesday night. All five teams have five games left in conference play.
 
Down by seven with 15:53 left, the Warriors got started with a pair of free throws by Foreman, igniting on a 10-2 run that was capped by a pair of free throws by freshman William Wingate (Philadelphia, Pa./Mastery Charter), giving Lycoming a 47-46 lead with 9:27 left.
 
The Falcons broke up the run with a layup, but Davis hit two free throws and Foreman started a run where he hit four 3-pointers in a 3:30 span to keep the Warriors ahead, with his last trey giving Lycoming a 63-58 lead with 2:39 left. After a layup by Bolen with 2:20 left, Davis’ putback set up the final dramatics.
 
Messiah was able to take a five-point lead into the break thanks to a hot half from behind the arc, hitting 6-of-11 in the first half, led by four from Taylor Groff.
 
Messiah jumped out to an 18-11 lead with 13:27 left before the Warriors responded, as senior Anthony Martin (Detroit, Mich./Christ the King) connected on an old-fashioned 3-point play, sparking an 8-1 run to move within a point with 11:06 left. The Falcons scored six in a row to get the lead to seven, but Lycoming, sparked by back-to-back 3-pointers from sophomore Chris Foreman (Union, N.J./Union) helped Lycoming score eighth in a row to take a 26-25 lead with 6:49 left.
 
The Falcons got the lead back with a 3-pointer from Scott Bolen and the team’s stayed within three points of each other before Zac Hoy hit a layup with nine seconds left in the half to give Messiah a 36-31 lead.
 
Messiah was able to start the second half in control, as well, as a 3-pointer by Groff and a layup by Bolen gave the Falcons a 44-37 lead with 15:53 left before the Warriors made their run.
 
Foreman finished with 25 points and a career-high seven 3-pointers, as he also had two assists and Rudy finished with 12 points, six rebounds, five offensive, three blocks and two steals to lead the Warriors. Junior Kevin Anthony (Columbus, Ohio/Bridgton Academy) added 10 points and four steals and Martin notched nine points and five rebounds. Williams finished with two points, six rebounds, six assists and four steals.
 
Groff led the Falcons with 18 points and eight rebounds and Bolen added 13 points, five rebounds and three assists. Mosley added 12 points and two assists.
 
The Warriors now head home to Lamade Gym to face Stevenson in a Commonwealth Conference game on Saturday, Feb. 2, at 1 p.m. Before the game, the team’s four seniors, Davis, Martin, Williams and John Ryan Wolff (Morrisville, Pa./Pennsbury) will be honored in a short Senior Day ceremony.