READING, Pa. – A clampdown defensive performance, holding Alvernia University to just 22 percent from 3-point range, helped snap a two-game skid for the Lycoming College men's basketball team, as it kept its one-game lead on first place in the MAC Commonwealth with a 78-61 win over third-place Alvernia on Wednesday night, Feb. 1, at Jack McCloskey Court.
 
Lycoming (17-4 overall, 9-3 MAC Commonwealth) was aggressive throughout, holding a 16-5 advantage on the offensive glass and 10-2 lead in steals, which led to a 14-6 lead in second-chance points and 16-7 advantage in points off turnovers.
 
"The players really wanted to show we could defend better than we did the last couple games," Lycoming head coach Guy Rancourt, who won his 150^th game with the Warriors, said. "We went with more man-to-man action, and they were right there with it. They responded well."
 
Alvernia (12-8 overall, 6-5 MAC Commonwealth) shot 39 percent (22-of-56) from the field and just 4-of-18 from 3-point range after both Messiah and Widener shot better than 45 percent from deep in upset wins.
 
Freshman Trent Bishop (Hyattsville, Md./Eleanor Roosevelt) led the Warriors with 14 points and he also added five rebounds, all while guarding preseason All-American Marquis Marshall, who posted 17 points, 15 rebounds and six blocks for the Crusaders.
 
The Warriors began to take control of the game in the middle portion of the second half, using a 16-1 run that occupied 8:40 of the period to take a 68-51 lead after freshman Damani Myers (Baldwin, N.Y./St. Mary's) banked in a 3-pointer with 5:29 left.
 
Bishop led the run with six points, as Lycoming fired up 21 shots and hit seven during the period, all while holding Alvernia to 0-for-8 from the field and 1-for-4 at the free throw line during that time.
 
After Myers' 3-pointer, the Warriors were able to get the lead to as many as 19 twice, the last time off a pair of free throws from sophomore Jordan Howze (Washington, D.C./School Without Walls) with 1:59 left before the Crusaders were able to score four of the last six points.
 
The Warriors' swarm-worthy run helped end a back-and-forth opening of the period, as Alvernia tied the game at 41 with 18:44 left in the half, but were never able to take the lead, or get as close as two points again.
 
The two teams fought through two ties and five lead changes in the first five minutes of the game before the Warriors went on a 17-2 run, hitting 7-of-10 shots from the floor and forcing two Alvernia turnovers and seven missed shots to turn an 11-10 deficit into a 27-13 lead after a layup from senior Willie Kee (Baltimore, Md./Parkville) with 9:27 left in the half.
 
The Crusaders fought back with six straight points to cut the lead to single digits and another five-point mini-run made it 31-28 after a Reid Hoff free throw with 3:28 left. The Crusaders, after that cold stretch that helped the Warriors take the big lead, hit 7-of-12 from the field in the rest of the half, with a 3-pointer from George Williams tying the game at 36 with 52 seconds left. Freshman Ronald Jefferson (Brooklyn, N.Y./Christ the King) hit a floater, though, to help Lycoming take a 38-36 lead into the break.
 
Junior Chris Wallace (Randallstown, Md./Calvert Hall) finished with a double-double off 10 points and 14 rebounds and senior Nyk King (Harlem, N.Y./Manhattan Center for Science & Math) added 10 points, five assists and five rebounds. Junior Alex Newbold (Bowie, Md./DeMatha Catholic) crossed 700 career points, finishing nine points, eight rebounds and two steals and sophomore T.J. Duckett (Severna Park, Md./Calvert Hall) also added nine points and three rebounds. Senior David Johnson (Philadelphia, Pa./Communications Tech) finished with seven points and two steals.
 
George Williams posted 18 points and five assists to join Marshall in double figures, but the other eight Crusaders went just 9-of-29 from the floor to combine for 26 points.
 
The Warriors will hit the road once again on Saturday, Feb. 4, when they head to Arcadia University to wrap up a MAC Commonwealth doubleheader, playing at 1 p.m. before the women's teams tip at 3 p.m.