Lebanon Valley 76, Alvernia 72
 
LVC Starters
Baker, Tucker, Catanzaro, Covey, Jones
 
Alvernia Starters
Pierce, Taylor, Thomas, Walker, Allen
 
How It Happened
ANNVILLE, Pa. – The Lebanon Valley men's basketball team picked up a huge conference victory Saturday afternoon when they topped Alvernia 76-72 in overtime. The Dutchmen used balance scoring as they had three players with 13 players in the win.
 
After hitting a pair of free throws with 1:03 left in the second half to tie the game and eventually send the game to extra time, Justin Baker would open the overtime with another free throw, followed by five straight points by Luis Garcia as LVC opened up overtime on a 6-1 run and led Alvernia 72-67 with just 1:47 remaining in overtime. With the Dutchmen leading by a pair, Garcia knocked down two clutch free throws with 11 ticks left to officially put Alvernia away to grab the win.
 
The Dutchmen opened the game in a groove offensively as they shot just under 42% from the field in the opening half to go along with 5-11 from 3-point range. AJ Catanzaro led LVC in the first half as he poured in 11 of his 13 points in the first 20 minutes including three triples. After trailing 16-13 in the first, the Dutchmen asserted themselves by going off on a 21-3 run to take control of the game with a 34-19 lead with just over three minutes until intermission. LVC would maintain their double-digit lead into halftime, leading 37-27.
 
The Dutchmen led for most of the second half until Steve Pierce knocked down a 3-pointer with 1:14 to go to tie the game up at 64. An off-the-ball foul at the same time allowed Keon Taylor go to the line to knock down two free throws and Alvernia used the five-point possession to take their first lead since the 10:57 mark of the first half when they led 16-13. Baker would hit two free throws of his own just 11 seconds later to tie the game.
 
Inside the Numbers

• AJ Catanzaro, Mason Green, and Collin Jones all paced LVC with 13 points apiece.
• Zach Tucker played an all-around game with nine points, eight rebounds, and six assists.
• Alvernia's Justin Thomas was impressive on the offensive end with a game-high 33 points.
• The Dutchmen bench was the difference as they outscored the Alvernia reserves 32-4.
• Alvernia finished with 42 points in the paint compared to LVC's 28.
• The Dutchmen shot 22-31 from the free throw line while Alvernia had struggles, going just 5-13.
• LVC was dominant on the glass, outrebounding Alvernia 51-30.

 
Who's Next?
The Dutchmen are on the road their next time out as they travel to Lycoming College to take on the Warriors on Wednesday evening. Tipoff is scheduled for 6 p.m. in Williamsport, Pa.

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