12/11/21
 
MBB: Lackawanna College Survives Upset Bid From SUNY Ulster, Wins 86-65
 
SCRANTON, Pa. – In a game that was much closer than the final score indicates, the Lackawanna College Falcons men's basketball team pulled away from SUNY Ulster to knock off the Senators, 86-65, at the Lackawanna Student Union on Saturday afternoon.
 
The Falcons (4-4) put three players in double-figures, including a game-high 23 points from Jaylen Davis, and outscored the Senators 27-19 off the bench, while shooting 45% from the field. However, the Falcons had 20 turnovers for the game, and held a slim 58-56 lead over Ulster (0-9), at the midway point of the second half. Lackawanna College went on a 28-9 run the rest of the way to pull away for the win.
 
Davis had a productive game for the Falcons, scoring 23 points on 9-for-14 shooting, grabbing eight rebounds, and blocking four shots on defense. For the second straight game, Will Johnson scored 20 points, while knocking down a pair of three-point shots and going 6-for-7 from the free throw line. Of the bench, Magd Abdelwahab scored 14 points, while Nashawn Johnson had seven points. Gabe Springer had five points, six blocks, and 12 rebounds for Lackawanna College. The Falcons outrebounded SUNY Ulster 55-32.
 
The first half was touch-and-go for the Falcons, who fell behind 3-0 initially before taking an 8-3 lead. All eight points were scored by Davis. The lead stretched to 15-5 at the under 12-minute mark of the half, but the Ulster Senators, down their second leading scorer and a few other contributors, fought back to make it 22-19 at 8:19 to go in the half. The Falcons were able to stretch the lead back out to 11 at 37-26, and had a 41-31 lead at the break. The Falcons shot 46% in the first half, but had 12 turnovers, and were outscored 8-2 on second-chance points, despite holding a +9 rebounding advantage at halftime.
 
Needing to pull away in the second half, Lackawanna College instead struggled to find consistency on offense, and the Ulster offense found some traction thanks to shots from Xavier Gibbs, Dylan Gizzi, and Eljamah Seymour. Gizzi, who scored 12 of his team-high 18 points in the second half, hit a runner on the baseline with 9:19 to go to make it 58-56, with the Falcons clinging to the two-point advantage. Ten seconds later, Gizzi was whistled for a technical foul by one of the officials. That seemed to be what woke the Falcons up. Will Johnson sank the two technical free throws, and Lackawanna College scored on the subsequent possession, thanks to a two-handed throwdown from Springer, making it 62-56.
 
Lackawanna College would close the game on a 28-9 run, changing a two-point lead into a 21-point victory. After some initial struggles from the free throw line, Lackawanna College went 15-for-21 in the second half, and held Ulster to just four made field goals for the final nine minutes.
 
With the win, Lackawanna College evens its overall record to 4-4. The Falcons do not play again until Saturday, December 18^th, when they travel to take on the County College of Morris in their final game of the fall semester. That game is set for a 1:00pm ET tipoff.