Lebanon Valley 87, Alvernia 83 (2OT)
 
LVC Starters
Baker, Tucker, Catanzaro, Covey, Deihm
 
Alvernia Starters
Pierce, Taylor, Youngkin, Walker, Allen
 
How It Happened
READING, Pa. – Behind Zach Tucker's career-game, Lebanon Valley edged Alvernia University 87-83 in double overtime on Saturday afternoon in MAC Commonwealth Men's Basketball action. The Flying Dutchmen stayed alive in the playoff conversation and improved to 9-10, 4-6 MACC, while the Golden Wolves fell to 10-9, 6-5 MACC.
 
With 50 seconds remaining in regulation, Tucker nailed a jumper, putting the visiting Dutchmen ahead by three at 64-61. 21 seconds later, however, Alvernia's Avery Walker drilled a trey, tying the game at 64-64. In the closing seconds, Collin Jones had a look at a 3-pointer for the win, but it missed and the game went into overtime.
 
In the first OT, LVC quickly went up by four thanks to Luis Garcia's two free throws, followed by Jones' layup that made the score 68-64 with 3:31 left. The Golden Wolves fought back and evened the game with 1:53 to go and even went ahead 69-68 after Steve Pierce's free throw, but Tucker's layup with 35 seconds remaining put the Dutchmen back on top. Later, with 16 ticks on the clock, Tucker connected on back-to-back free throws to pad LVC's lead at 72-69, but Pierce hit a layup with six seconds left to make it a one-point lead for the Dutchmen. Garcia then hit one-of-two from the charity stripe, and after a timeout, Pierce was able to land a tough layup as time expired, tying the game at 73-73 and forcing another extra period.
 
After each team traded a pair of buckets to begin the second overtime, Mason Green knocked down a 3-pointer with 3:08 to go, giving LVC a three-point lead at 78-75. Jones then made a pair from the charity stripe at 2:49 to make it an 80-75 game, but Alvernia hung around and eventually came to within one at 80-79 with 1:47 remaining in the second OT. Tucker hit two more free throws for the answer, followed by Garcia's free throw that put the Dutchmen back on top by four at 83-79 with 1:29 left. Down the stretch, LVC made just enough free throws and held off the Golden Wolves for the thrilling 87-83 2OT victory.
 
Early in the game, Alvernia jumped out to a quick 13-7 lead with 15 minutes to go in the first half. LVC responded with a 5-0 run, capped by Jones' fastbreak-layup, bringing the Dutchmen to within one at 13-12 with 9:18 to go. With 6:07 left, LVC took the lead after Trevor Covey knocked down a trey to make it 19-18, and later, with 2:14 remaining in the opening half, AJ Catanzaro hit a 3-pointer to give the Dutchmen a 27-21 lead. LVC went ahead by as many as 10 in the closing minute of the first, and went into the locker room with a 32-23 advantage.
 
Inside the Numbers
 - Zach Tucker poured in a career-high 30 points on 10-of-16 shooting, including a 4-for-6 line from beyond the arc and a 6-for-7 line from the charity stripe.
 - Collin Jones finished with 16 points off the bench, as well as 13 rebounds for the double-double.
 - Trevor Covey ended with eight points and four boards.
 - Luis Garcia also chipped in eight points and led the team with five assists.
 - Alvernia was paced by Justin Thomas, who netted 22 points and hauled in 15 rebounds.
 - The Golden Wolves held the edge in shooting percentage at 46.4% to 41.5%.
 - LVC hit 25-of-35 from the charity stripe, while Alvernia went just 12-for-26.
 - The Dutchmen held the edge in bench points at 35-26.
 - Back on Jan. 11, these two teams played another OT game in Annville where LVC came away with a 76-72 win.
 
Who's Next?
LVC returns to Sorrentino Gymnasium this Wednesday, Feb. 5., when the Dutchmen host Lycoming at 6 p.m.
 
Stay Connected
Be sure to follow @lvcathletics on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook for the most in-depth coverage of LVC athletics.