FREDERICK, Md. – Freshman Issak Bodon (Brooklyn, N.Y./Bishop Laughlin) notched 16 points and sophomore Nykolas King (New York, N.Y./Manhattan Center for Science & Math) added 15, but a late rally thwarted the Lycoming College men's basketball team on Saturday afternoon, Dec. 6, as it narrowly fell to Hood College, 72-70, in Commonwealth Conference action at BB& T Arena.
 
A 3-pointer from Hood's Reggie Daniels with 3:34 left marked the last lead change in a game with seven of them, giving the Blazers (2-4 overall, 1-2 Commonwealth) a 62-61 lead. After each team had two offensive possessions each, the teams began to travel to the line, with a pair by Davon Hill giving the Blazers a 64-61 lead before Boden hit two with 1:40 left to close back within a point.
 
Hill converted on a layup with 1:17 left before he also hit a free throw with 46 seconds left to make it 67-63. Bodon responded with a 3-pointer to make it 67-66. Chris Cook hit a pair of free throws with 34 seconds left, but the Warriors (4-4 overall, 2-1 Commonwealth) closed back within a point on a layup by King, which made it 69-68. After the ensuing foul, the Blazers hit just one of their free throws, but a 3-point attempt for the lead with 11 seconds left came up short, and the Warriors were forced to foul again. Terryl Buyck hit both of his free throws to make it 72-68 and King shortened the final margin with a layup at the buzzer.
 
The Warriors took control of the game at the end of the first half, closing the half on a 13-2 run, with an old-fashioned 3-point play by freshman Darius James (Brooklyn, N.Y./Bishop Laughlin) giving the team a 42-32 lead at the break.
 
Lycoming expanded the lead to as many as 11 in the second half, but Hood got back into the game with a 16-5 run that occupied almost nine minutes in the second half, tying the game at 52 off a 3-pointer from Davon Hill with 7:27 left. The two teams fought through three lead changes in the next four minutes before Daniels' 3-pointer put Hood ahead.
 
In the first half, the two teams stayed within five points of each other until the Warriors took a seven-point lead with 7:42 left at 25-18. The Blazers immediately scored the next six points and eventually took a 30-29 lead off a fastbreak layup by Cook before the Warriors started their run.
 
Freshman Alex Newbold (Bowie, Md./DeMatha Catholic) posted 10 points and seven rebounds and junior John Monkam (Lanham, Md./DuVal) added five points and nine rebounds, as Lycoming held a 41-31 advantage on the glass. Senior Malcolm Covington (Queens, N.Y./Blessed Sacrament) added five points, five rebounds and five assists and senior Patrick Dougher (Scotch Plains, N.J./Scotch Plains-Fanwood) added six points off two 3-pointers.
 
Hill led all scorers with 19 points to lead Hood while Cook added 18 points. Buyck notched 12 points and five rebounds and Reggie Daniels added 11 points and five rebounds. Trevor Magnuski posted six points, nine rebounds and six assists.
 
The Warriors lost the battle of turnovers for the first time this year, as Hood forced 21 while giving up 17. Hood also held a slim advantage in shooting, firing 46 percent while Lycoming shot 44 percent.
 
The Warriors will take off for finals week before heading to local rival Penn College on Sunday, Dec. 14, at 1 p.m.