Box Score

ANNVILLE, Pa. – Sophomore guard J.D. Byers (Westminster, Md./Westminster) scored a game-high 19 points on 8-of-12 shooting as four different Flying Dutchmen reached double figures in scoring in a 93-62 LVC victory over Susquehanna University Wednesday evening in the Commonwealth Conference opener for both teams at Lynch Gymnasium.

Byers also dished out a game and career-high 12 assists as LVC (3-2) handed Susquehanna (3-1) its first loss of the season.

Senior center Darren Pugh (Shippensburg, Pa./Shippensburg) scored 18 points and surpassed the 800-point mark for his career. He also had a game-high eight rebounds. Junior guard Evan Harlor (Danville, Pa./Danville) tied a season-high with 13 points, all in the first half, while freshman forward Dave Kasyan (Toms River, N.J./Toms River) notched a career-high with 10 points.

Lebanon Valley shot a blistering 57.1 percent from the field (32-of-56) and 61.1 percent (11-of-18) from three-point land. The Dutchmen held Susquehanna to 35.9 percent shooting and 16.7 percent (3-of-18) from downtown.

Susquehanna was led by senior forward Tim Hurd and freshman center Walter Fowler, who scored a team-high nine points apiece. Sophomore forward Rob Dombroski added a team-high seven rebounds.

LVC’s 93 points marked the team’s highest scoring total since the Dutchmen’s 100-81 victory over Albright College on Jan. 9 of last season. Thirteen different players scored for LVC while 11 Crusaders broke into the scoring column.

The Dutchmen were hot right from the opening tip, hitting on eight of their first 11 shots to forge a 21-8 lead with 12:47 left in the opening half following a three-point bucket by Harlor. LVC saw its lead balloon to as much as 28 (43-15) with 4:00 left in the opening stanza after a Kasyan trey capped an 11-0 Dutchmen run. Susquehanna used a 7-0 surge to close the half and put a small dent (48-28) into the gap at halftime.

The second half was more of the same for Lebanon Valley. After Susquehanna closed to within 17 (53-36) with 16:39 left, the Dutchmen answered with a 13-5 spurt to open up a 25-point advantage with 13:56 remaining. The closest the Crusaders got the rest of the way was 17 (73-56) with 7:25 left before a 13-2 LVC run put the game out of reach.

Lebanon Valley picks up its Commonwealth Conference schedule on Saturday when it its hosts Moravian College in the first game of a men’s and women’s doubleheader beginning at 2 p.m.

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