FREDERICK, Md. – Holding Hood without a field goal for the final 2:47, the Lycoming College men's basketball team scored seven of the game's last nine points as it posted a 73-68 MAC Commonwealth win at Hood College on Saturday, Jan. 21, at BB&T Arena.
 
Lycoming (16-2 overall, 8-1 MAC Commonwealth) used its toughness to keep the game out of reach from Hood (13-5 overall, 5-4 MAC Commonwealth), allowing just a single layup in the final eight minutes, as Hood hit just one of its last 12 shots from the field, while also missing two free throws and being forced into three turnovers during that run.
 
After a pair of Michael Riley free throws gave Hood a 66-65 lead with 8:01 left, the Warriors tied and took the lead with single free throws, one from junior Chris Wallace (Randallstown, Md./Calvert Hall) with 7:47 left and one from senior Willie Kee (Baltimore, Md./Parkville) with 6:14 left. Wallace extended the lead to three points with 4:29 left by taking the baseline for a layup and junior Alex Newbold (Bowie, Md./DeMatha Catholic) gave Lycoming a 71-66 lead with 3:02 left off another layup.
 
Jared Ruiz got Hood back within three points with 2:47 left and Hood had three shots to tie, but none fell. With 42 seconds left, the Warriors took a timeout and out of the timeout ran the shot clock down to five seconds before Kee drove the lane and put up a layup that ricocheted off the backboard to the weak side, where Wallace put it in as the shot clock expired, giving Lycoming a 73-68 lead with 16 seconds left.
 
The Blazers missed two more layups late, ensuring the Warriors their fourth straight win and giving the team a three-game lead in the MAC Commonwealth regular season with seven games remaining. The Warriors' magic number to clinch a conference tournament slot is four.
 
Newbold led the Warriors with 14 points and seven rebounds and sophomore T.J. Duckett (Severna Park, Md./Calvert Hall) added 13 points, hitting four 3-pointers. Wallace added nine points and 11 rebounds and senior David Johnson (Philadelphia, Pa./Communications Tech) added nine points and two assists. Kee also added eight points and four rebounds.
 
The Warriors held a 41-34 advantage in rebounding, helping it to a 40-26 advantage in the glass and a 20-9 lead in second chance points. They also took 22 more shots from the field, hitting 42 percent (29-of-69).
 
Ruiz led the Blazers with 13 points and Scott Bolen added 12 points and six rebounds. Luke Casey also finished with 11 points and three rebounds. The Blazers were shooting 60 percent from the field before Lycoming put the clamps on in the final eight minutes, finishing at 47 percent (22-of-47).
 
The two teams went back and forth throughout the first half and first 12 minutes of the second, fighting through nine ties and 20 lead changes, with neither team gaining a lead of more than six points. Both teams shot well in the first half, when they fought to a 45-45 tie, as Lycoming hit 53 percent (18-of-34) and Hood hit 64 (14-of-22).
 
The Warriors get back on the court on Wednesday, Jan. 25, when they host Messiah in an 8 p.m. MAC Commonwealth clash at Lamade Gym.