GWYNEDD VALLEY, Pa. – Evin Timochenko, Ryan Harder, and Jason Penn all scored in double figures for the Lebanon Valley Men's Basketball team in a hard-fought 83-69 defeat at undefeated Gwynedd Mercy University on Saturday afternoon.
 
The host Griffins (9-0) outscored the Dutchmen (5-3) 45-30 in the first half while LVC edged GMU 39-38 in the second half. Gwynedd Mercy held the Dutchmen scoreless over the first four minutes and scored three layups over the time span to take a 6-0 lead. Kyle Tang put LVC on the board with a jumper and then Harder knocked down a shot while being fouled to cut the lead to 6-4 with 14:33 on the clock. GMU responded with a three-pointer before LVC countered with a pair of layups by Tyson Hofsass and Timochenko to make it a one-point game. The Griffins used a 6-2 run over the next two minutes to retake a five-point lead. The teams traded scores until a three-pointer and layup gave the hosts a 22-14 advantage with 9:44 remaining in the half.
 
A pair of three-pointers sandwiched two Penn free throws to increase the lead to 12. Harder knocked down a pair of threes and then Tang found Timochenko underneath for a layup to cut the advantage to 28-24 and force the Griffins to call a timeout with 6:27 left. The Dutchmen got another stop out of the timeout and Harder hit both of his free throws attempt to make it a one-possession game. Gwynedd Mercy ended the run with a bucket and then scored five of the next seven points to take a 35-28 lead. The Griffins hit a three to increase the lead to 40-28 with two minutes on the clock. Harder brought the lead back down to 10 with a bucket before GMU scored the final five points of the half in the final minute.
 
LVC came out of the break strong as Wil Laskowski found Timochenko open underneath for a basket on the first play of the half. Harder then hit a jumper before the Griffins scored their first bucket of the half with a layup. The teams traded three-pointers as Evan Smith answered a Griffin three but then GMU responded right back at the other end with another three-pointer. Timochenko scored six of the next nine points in the game to cut the deficit to 56-43. The Griffins responded with a 8-0 run over the next two minutes to go up by 21 with 12:32 remaining. Penn stopped the run with a driving layup and then a pair of made free throws on a technical foul. The guard knocked down a three and then Timochenko had a putback on an offensive rebound to get the advantage down to 12 at 66-54 just over midway through the half.
 
The Griffins halted the run with a three, but Penn knocked down another three at the other end to keep it a 12-point game. Harder got the deficit to 10 with a driving layup and then GMU hit a three at the other end. Penn had a pair of layups and then Timochenko scored off an assist from Penn to make it 72-65 with 5:39 left on the clock. After a bucket by the Griffins, Braden Bohannon knocked down a three to get the Dutchmen within six with five minutes to play. Gwynedd Mercy held the Dutchmen off the scoreboard over the next 2:30 and scored seven points to increase the lead to 13. Hofsass ended the scoring drought with a made free throw and the Griffins wrapped up the scoring with a pair of made shots at the line to stay undefeated.
 
Inside the Box

• Timochenko recorded his fifth double-double of the year with 22 points and 17 rebounds. The senior was 11-13 from the field and had four offensive rebounds. He also blocked two shots on defense.
• Harder finished with 18 points and six rebounds with two assists. The guard was 7-12 from the field including 2-3 on three-pointers.
• Penn continued his strong play with 16 points. He was 5-9 from the field including 2-3 from beyond the arch and a perfect 4-4 on free throw attempts. He has scored in double figures in each of the past five games.
• Tang had four points, a team-high four assists, and three rebounds while Hofsass added three points, four rebounds, and a team-high four assists
• LVC shot 51.9 percent from the floor making 28 of 54 field goal attempts. They had a 39-27 rebounding advantage and scored 38 points in the paint.

Up Next
The Dutchmen will be back in action next Saturday, December 21 with a 1 p.m. tip-off at Wilson College in Chambersburg.

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