Box Score 2/14/22
 
NEWARK, NJ – In a must win game to keep their playoff hopes alive, the Lackawanna College Falcons put in one of their most complete, dominant performances of the year, taking control early and never letting up in an 89-69 road victory over Essex County College on Monday night.
 
The win guarantees Lackawanna College (7-15, 5-5) the #4 seed in the Region XIX standings, putting them into the playoff picture. The Falcons took control early in the first half, opening the half with a massive run that staked them to a lead they would never relinquish. Will Johnson had 13 first half points to help the Falcons gain their lead, and Daryl Coleman scored 23 of his season-high 32 points in the second half to help the Falcons keep their lead. Jaylen Davis added ten points for the Falcons, who won their second straight Region XIX game.
 
It started right from the tap for Lackawanna College, as the Falcons won the tap, and Nashawn Johnson quickly fired a pass to Daryl Coleman, who laid it up within five seconds. Essex (8-11, 4-6) scored the next four to go up 4-2, but an Ahmir Ellzy three would kick start a 15-2 run for Lackawanna College, putting the Falcons up 17-6 with 12:56 to go in the first half. Even after a timeout, the run would extend to 22-5, staking the Falcons to a 24-9 advantage with just over nine minutes to go. In that run, Will Johnson had eight points, including two three-pointers, and Ahmir Ellzy had seven points for the Falcons.
 
The Wolverines would respond with an 8-2 run to get it back within single digits at 26-17, as the Falcons suffered through an offensive lull, but a Will Johnson pull-up jumper in the lane got the Falcons back on track with five minutes to play. Later, Will would can another three-pointer, giving him 13 in the first half alone, to give the Falcons a 35-19 lead with 2:31 to go in the half. In past games, at this point, the Falcons would typically struggle to hold onto a lead, but against Essex, Lackawanna was able to expand their lead even further, going into the break with a 42-22 advantage.
 
Lackawanna came out in the second half and scored on their first possession, thanks to a Daryl Coleman right handed runner from the baseline. After a defensive stop on one end, Coleman would bang home a three from the left wing, then, after an Essex bucket, drive home a fast-break of his own to make it 49-24, Lackawanna College, just a few minutes in. It was all part of nine straight points from Coleman to open the half. Essex would hit a mini-run to cut the lead to 57-42 with just over 13 minutes to play, but a Coleman three-point play helped the Falcons regain their composure.
 
Every time it seemed that Essex would begin to mount a challenge, the Falcons would strike back and stretch the lead back out, maintaining a double-digit lead throughout the second half, and cruising to a big Region XIX victory.  
 
Lackawanna College still has two regular season games remaining before the Region XIX playoffs, and their home finale is up first on Tuesday, February 15^th, when they host the SUNY Rockland Hawks. That game is scheduled for a 7:00pm ET tip-off at the Lackawanna Student Union.