Men's Basketball 2nd Half Rally Falls Short at Susquehanna
The Moravian College men's basketball team was defeated by Landmark Conference rival Susquehanna University 66-65. Junior guard Garrett Johnson led the way for the Greyhounds with a double-double off of 15 points and ten rebounds.
The Moravian College men's basketball team was defeated by Landmark Conference rival Susquehanna University 66-65. Junior guard Garrett Johnson led the way for the Greyhounds with a double-double off of 15 points and ten rebounds.
A minute into the contest junior guard D.J. Strayhorn got Moravian on the board first with a deep three-pointer. Another three-pointer from sophomore guard Kenny Gula would push the Hounds lead to 6-2, two and half minutes into the contest.
The Crusaders would then go on a 9-0 run with a three-pointer from junior forward J.T .Wilson and capped off by a layup from senior guard Spenser Spencer to give them an 11-6 lead five minutes in. A three-pointer from Johnson would knot the game at 11 with 13:38 left in the half.
Senior guard Mark Koelbel would drive to the basket, and make the layup while drawing the foul. He would convert the free throw to give Moravian an 18-15 lead with 11 minutes to play in the half. Spencer would answer back with a three two minutes later to give the lead back to Susquehanna at 19-18. The Crusaders would push their lead to three points at 24-21 after an easy layup from sophomore guard Mike Perillo at the 7:41 mark on the first half.
Strayhorn's jumper would end Susquehanna's 8-0 run with a layup and Johnson would follow that up with a three to cut the Hounds deficit to three points with under three minutes left in the half. Susquehanna would add a few more buckets down the stretch and take a 35-27 lead into the locker room.
Moravian shot 33-percent from the field while Susquehanna shot 42-percent from the field in the first half. The Greyhounds had six less rebounds and two more turnovers in the half. Johnson led Moravian eight points and six rebounds while Wilson led the Crusaders with nine points and six boards in the first half.
Sophomore center Harley Sellinger would get the Crusaders on the board first in the second half with a layup. Freshman guard Izel Dickerson and Strayhorn would make back-to-back buckets to cut the Greyhounds deficit to seven points at 38-31 one minute into the second half. Two minutes later, Johnson would hit a jumper and Dickerson would make back-to-back layups to bring Moravian within one point of the lead at 40-39.
Spencer would end the Hounds run with a layup and a three-pointer on the next possession to make the score 45-39 with just under 16 minutes remaining. Back-to-back layups from Johnson and Strayhorn would bring the Hounds within two points of the lead at the 14:20 mark of the second half. A deep three from Strayhorn at 13:45 would make the score 47-46, Susquehanna. Perillo responded with a three of his own thirty seconds later, and then a layup from Sellinger would push the Crusaders lead to 52-46 with 11 minutes to go in the contest.
A rainbow three from Dickerson would bring Moravian within three points of the lead with nine minutes to go in the contest. Freshman guard Tony Seldon answered right back with an easy layup to put the Crusaders up 58-53. Senior forward Jeff Cullinan and sophomore forward Cameron Cullen would make back-to-back layups as the Greyhounds tied the game at 58 with 4:37 to play in the contest.
Spencer would give Susquehanna a 66-64 lead after two free throws with 1:18 left in the second half. Johnson would make on free throw after being fouled on a rebound attempt to put the score at 66-65 with 35 seconds left. Strayhorn would throw up one last shot at the end of regulation, but it wouldn't go in as Susquehanna went onto win 66-65.
Strayhorn finished with 17 points and five assists while Dickerson had ten points and three assists. Cullinan had six points and eight rebounds while Cullen had six points and six boards.
Wilson led the Crusaders with 15 points and six rebounds while Spencer had 16 points, five boards and four assists. Sellinger put up 13 points and eight rebounds while Perillo had seven points and six assists.
Moravian shot 46-percent from the field while Susquehanna shot 45-percent from the field for the game. The Greyhounds finished with six fewer rebounds and had two less turnovers than the Crusaders for the game.
Moravian returns to action Friday, January 27th when they travel to conference foe Goucher College. The contest is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.
