2/3/22
 
SCRANTON, Pa. – The Lackawanna College Men's Basketball team held a lead at halftime, but were on the wrong end of a game-changing 13-0 run, sparking the CCBC Dundalk Lions to snap their six-game losing streak with a 67-61 win over Lackawanna College on Thursday night at the Lackawanna Student Union.
 
The Falcons (5-12) held a 35-30 lead at halftime, and were ahead 39-34 early just two minutes into the second half, but a costly 13-0 run over the next 3:45 turned the game on its head, catapulting the Lions into the lead. Lackawanna College tied the game with 5:39 to go, but an Amear Johnson lay-up recaptured the lead for the Lions, one which they would never surrender through the rest of the game.
 
Lackawanna College was led by Magd Abdelwahab, who scored 16 points off the bench, 12 coming in the first half. In all, ten different Falcons scored, but the Falcons shot 39% for the game, including just 4-for-25 from beyond-the-arc. Lackawanna had 23 turnovers on the night, and CCBC Dundalk turned that into 20 points.
 
The first half started poorly for the Falcons, who fell behind 10-2 under three minutes into the game. At that point, coach Landon Gabriel used a line change substitution, putting five new players on the floor to try to spark the Falcons. What followed was just that, as Daryl Coleman, Nashawn Johnson, and Magd Abdelwahab hit consecutive shots to bring the Falcons level at 10-all. Lackawanna College grabbed the lead at 13:20 to go in the half, when Ky'Ron Harbin scored through contact and completed the three-point play to go up 15-13. A transition jumper by Abdelwahab, followed by an additional bucket from Harbin, made it 19-13, Falcons, with 11 minutes to play. The bench mob for Lackawanna College scored 22 points in the first half, alone, and ended with 41 points for the game.
 
Dundalk responded with a mini-run to close the gap to 22-19, holding the Falcons without a bucket for over 3:34 before a Gabe Springer two-handed jam broke the scoreless streak. That seemed to kickstart the Falcon offense, as Lackawanna started stretching the lead back out. After the teams traded some points, a Jaylen Davis jumper was followed up by a Will Johnson three to make it a double-digit lead. Another bucket, this time from David Pope, made it 35-23 Falcons with 2:16 to play in the first half, and the game in danger of being blow open. But, the Lions responded with a 7-0+ run to close the half, with Jayson Mouzon scoring five of the seven points to get it to 35-30 at the break.
 
The Falcons held a 39-34 lead with 18:05 to play in the second half, when CCBC Dundalk, out of a timeout, deployed a zone defense that flustered the Falcon offense. Dundalk used that to begin to make its move. Naasir Johnson and Murray Grant started to heat up for the Lions, as a Johnson bucket got them within three, and a Grant three-pointer tied things up. Johnson would strike again, this time with his own three, giving the Lions a 42-39 advantage with 16:52 to play. Murray Grant and Johnson would trade some more points as the Falcons floundered on offense, with the result being a 47-39 lead for Dundalk with 14:20 remaining.
 
A Daryl Coleman lay-up got the Falcons back in the scoring column, and a Will Johnson lay-up in transition two minutes later put the Falcons within four points, but a Murray Grant three-pointer immediately stretched the lead back out to seven with 12:01 to play. The Falcons would go another 3:35 between buckets at the midway stage of the half, but managed to put a handful of free throws on the board, while also only giving up one bucket to the Lions. When Ahmir Ellzy hit a runner to cut it to four at 54-50, there was still 8:09 left to play, and the Falcons were still searching for that offensive spark.
 
That Ellzy bucket was the first in a mini 6-0 run that brought the count to 54-all at 5:39 in the second half, but an Amear Johnson lay-up in the paint gave the Lions the lead back, almost immediately.  Later, clinging to a two-point lead, Jayson Mouzon would hit the first of two back-breaking threes down the stretch, making it a 61-56 game with 2:08 to play. An Ellzy three-point play would bring it back within two with under two minutes to go, but Mouzon would strike again, this time from the right corner, giving Dundalk a five-point cushion. From there, The Lions would get a smattering of free throw attempts, while the Falcons continued to struggle scoring the ball.
 
Lackawanna College returns to Region XIX play on Saturday, February 5^th, when County College of Morris comes to the Lackawanna Student Union. Tip-off is scheduled for 1:00pm ET.