ANNVILLE, Pa. ­­– Luis Garcia scored a game-high and season-high 27 points for the Lebanon Valley College men's basketball team, leading the program to an 82-76 victory over King's College on Wednesday, Feb. 14 at Sorrentino Gymnasium. 

The programs went back and forth early in the first half, exchanging baskets until the Dutchmen led the Monarchs 12-11 with 14:31 remaining. Lebanon Valley opened the scoring 1:10 into the stanza, as Ryan Harder connected on a turnaround jumper. During the remainder of this stretch, Harder knocked down a three-pointer, Garcia made a layup and a three, while Evin Timochenko converted a turnaround jump shot. 

The Flying Dutchmen followed this with five consecutive points, claiming a 17-11 advantage with 13:24 to go. The program went ahead by six after Garcia made a pull-up jumper and Harder completed a three-point play, drawing a foul on a successful layup and converting the free throw. King's then posted a 4-1 stretch, trimming its deficit to 18-15 with 12:01 left in the first. LVC responded with a three-pointer by Karson Pavlik, making it a 21-15 game with 10:36 to play. 

The Monarchs followed this with a 7-2 run, narrowing the score to 23-22 with 7:42 remaining in the opening half. The Dutchmen answered with a dominant 8-2 stretch, taking a 31-24 lead with 4:48 left in the stanza. Over this span, Timochenko made a layup and a free throw before Garcia knocked down a three-pointer and Kyle Tang made a layup. King's then went on a 6-2 run, advancing the score to 33-30 in favor of LVC with 2:09 to go. 

The Dutchmen proceeded to close out the first half with a 9-0 run in the final two minutes, taking a 42-30 advantage into halftime. During this stretch, Timochenko made a layup and a jumper before Tang converted a jump shot with less than a minute left. Lebanon Valley capped off the first with a buzzer-beating three by Evan Smith, providing the squad with a 12-point lead entering the break.

The Flying Dutchmen kept their offense rolling early in the second half, scoring the first four points to claim a 46-30 advantage with 18:12 remaining. Garcia opened the stanza with a layup before Tang also connected on a layup. LVC followed this with a 6-4 stretch, going up 52-34 with 15:50 to go after a pair of three-pointers by Garcia. The Monarchs then made a jumper and a three, narrowing the score to 52-39 with 15:17 left. 

Lebanon Valley answered back with an 8-2 run, going ahead 60-41 with 13:03 to play. This span included a three-pointer by Braden Bohannon, a pull-up jump shot by Tang, and another three by Garcia. King's responded with a 15-3 stretch, trimming its deficit to 63-56 with 7:51 remaining in the second half. Harder then knocked down a pull-up jumper for the Dutchmen before the Monarchs connected on a three and a pair of foul shots. LVC was ahead 65-61 with just over seven minutes left in the contest. 

The Dutchmen followed this by going on a 7-2 run, taking a 72-63 lead with 3:09 to go in the second stanza. In this stretch, Tang made a layup and a couple of free throws while Harder also connected on a layup. King's then went on a 7-4 run, making it a 76-70 game with 55 seconds left. Each program scored six points in the remaining seconds, as Lebanon Valley held on for the 82-76 win. 

 Inside the Box Score

• Garcia posted a game-high and season-high 27 points, marking the most points a player has scored for Lebanon Valley this winter. The graduate student guard also tied for game-highs with eight made field goals, five three-pointers, and five steals. Garcia's totals for successful field goals and six converted free throws tied season-highs, while his totals in made threes and steals set season-highs. 
• Tang scored 17 points for Lebanon Valley while tying a season-high five made field goals making a game-high seven free throws. The sophomore guard also recorded seven rebounds, four assists, and two steals.
• Timochenko had game-highs with 13 rebounds, five assists, and two blocks. Additionally, the junior forward set season-highs in assists and blocks while scoring nine points. 
• Harder registered 13 points with eight rebounds and a pair of assists. 
• Smith logged six points with three rebounds while tying a season-high two steals. 
• LVC scored 34 points in the paint and 13 second-chance points. The program also had 10 points off turnovers and 12 fast-break points.
• The Flying Dutchmen tallied a season-high 46 total rebounds. 
• Lebanon Valley swept the season series against King's. 

Up Next 
Lebanon Valley will return to the court at 4 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 17, as the team will travel to take on Arcadia University at Alumni Gymnasium in Glenside, Pennsylvania for its final regular season game. 

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