3/1/25
 
SCRANTON, Pa. – Lackawanna College had the defending champions on the ropes at home, leading by nine late in the second half, but Raritan Valley CC never panicked, and the Lions showed the heart of a champion to knock off Lackawanna College, 76-75, on Saturday afternoon in the Region XIX Division II Men's Basketball Championship inside the historic Lackawanna College Student Union gymnasium.
 
The Falcons (16-15) had just hit a three-pointer, courtesy of Nick Marabito (Upper Darby, PA), to grab a 71-62 lead with four minutes to go, sending an already raucous crowd to the rafters, as the Falcons were threatening to derail the coronation of the three-time champions.
 
Raritan (19-13), which defeated Lackawanna twice in the regular season and downed the Falcons two years ago in 2023 to win its first title, refused to blink, and immediately hit a 9-0 run to tie the game over the next two minutes, twice turning the Falcons over and converting on back-to-back three-point plays, and then tying the game on an offensive rebound with 2:27 to play.
 
Lackawanna answered with a backdoor cut by Evan Laybourn-Boddie (Scranton, PA) on the baseline to retake a 73-71 lead, and then the Falcons scored again when Laybourn-Boddie converted a lay-up to make it 75-71 with 1:36 to play.
 
Raydelh Boutin came right down and hit a three in the right corner with 1:23 to go to bring it back within a point. After a timeout, Lackawanna was called for an offensive foul to turn the ball over with 58 seconds to go, giving the ball back to Raritan.
 
The Lions missed a three from out top, but the Falcons couldn't corral the ball and it went out of bounds off Lackawanna into the corner. Raritan got a few looks through Boutin, but couldn't convert, and Sutan Fitzpatrick eventually drew a loose ball foul with 14.4 to play and went to the line. Fitzpatrick calmly sank both free throws to give Raritan the one-point lead.
 
Lackawanna College advanced the ball and called timeout with 10.6 to play to set up their final look. A three-pointer hit the front rim and bounced down, but the Falcons drew a held ball to retain possession with 2.2 to go. On the baseline out of bounds, the Falcons got it to Laybourn-Boddie in the corner, but his baseline runner was too strong, and Raritan hung on for the dramatic victory.
 
The game featured eleven ties and nine lead changes, and the nine-point Lackawanna lead was the largest of the game. Raritan's largest lead was 10-2, a deficit the Falcons quickly climbed out of in the first half.
 
Lackawanna College shot 41.4% from the floor and was 8-for-20 from downtown, committing 16 turnovers and outrebounding Raritan 47-44. Raritan had a 19-15 advantage in points off turnovers, and they had a 12-9 advantage in second-chance points.
 
The Falcons were led by Laybourn-Boddie's game-high 30 points, the second-straight game where he went for 30. Evan was 12-for-23 from the floor, hitting four three-pointers. Marabito had 23 points, 17 coming in the second half alone, nearly willing the Falcons to the victory. Jireej Cole (Bronx, NY) was held to just four points, but the big guy had a season-best 17 rebounds.
 
Raritan Valley shot 39.7% from the field on the day and hit eight threes of their own. The Lions had three players in double-figures scoring, led by Boutin's 19 points and nine rebounds. Miles Whye added eleven points and eight boards, while Fitzpatrick scored 15 points, grabbed eight rebounds, and dished out four assists.
 
The win gives Raritan Valley its third-straight region crown. The Lions will advance to the East District A championship to face the Region III champion at a time and place TBD next weekend.
 
Lackawanna College finishes its season in the Region XIX DII final for the second time in three years, ending the 2024-2025 campaign at 16-15. Laybourn-Boddie, a first team All-Region selection as a first-year player, led the team in scoring this year at 18.8 points per game and finished his first season with 563 points and 86 made three-pointers.