11/16/24
 
SANBORN, NY – Lackawanna men's basketball made DII #19 SUNY Niagara sweat, but the Thunder Wolves used a key 10-0 run early in the second half to take the lead, then slowly pulled away for the 83-73 defeat of the Falcons on Saturday evening at the SUNY Niagara Tip-Off Classic in western New York.
 
The Falcons (4-3) held a 42-38 lead early in the second half after Jasier Carter (North Brunswick, NJ) scored on back-to-back lay-ups with 18:04 to play. It would be the last basket the Falcons scored over a crucial stretch of the next five minutes, as the Thunder Wolves (7-0) took the lead for good on a steal and lay-up at the 16:37 mark of the half, then expanded their lead out to six before the Falcons could call a timeout.
 
The lead for Niagara yo-yoed between seven and nine points for pretty much the rest of the game, with Lackawanna getting it as close as five points with a three-point shot from Evan Laybourn-Boddie (Scranton, PA) that made it 75-70 with 1:46 to play. Back-to-back buckets by Niagara made it 79-70 with 1:15 to go, and the Thunder Wolves would coast from there for the ten-point win.
 
Lackawanna shot 39.4% from the floor, but was just 8-for-32 from downtown (25%) and attempted only 13 free throws on the evening, while Niagara made 18-for-25 from the line and shot 44% from the floor. The Thunder Wolves had eight steals and forced 17 turnovers, outscoring the Falcons 17-6 on fast-break points and putting up 20 points off turnovers.
 
Four players scored in double-figures for the Falcons, with Laybourn-Boddie and guard Shawnn Smith (Philadelphia, PA) each putting up 13 points. Laybourn-Boddie added a team-best five assists. Elijah Smith (Washington, DC) came off the bench to score eleven points, while Nick Marabito (Upper Darby, PA) returned from injury to score ten points. Carter, who got the start, scored eight points and had a team-high six rebounds.
 
The Falcons get back to work tomorrow afternoon on day two of the Niagara Tip-Off Classic, taking on Jamestown CC at 2:00pm ET on Sunday inside the SUNY Niagara gymnasium.