2/26/26
 
SCRANTON, Pa. – Lackawanna College men's basketball nearly pulled it off again with its back against the wall, but it wasn't meant to be, as top-seed Mercer County CC escaped with an 81-77 victory in the Region XIX Division II semifinal on Thursday night inside the historic Lackawanna College Student Union gymnasium.
 
The Falcons (16-16) trailed at halftime, 43-40, and were down by eight points with 8:40 to play at 64-58, when they tried to make one last push towards a championship bid. A Noah Elias (Silver Spring, MD) three-pointer, followed by a Jaksa Pejovic (Podgorica, Montenegro) finish in the paint had the Falcons down just one within 90 seconds, and a jumper from Jahsan Simms (Hillside, NJ) tied the game at 65 after a Mercer free throw with 6:16 remaining. Simms gave the Falcons a lead at 66-65 on a free throw, but the Mustangs (19-11) eventually grabbed the lead for good after three straight buckets inside, going ahead 71-69 with under four minutes remaining.
 
The Falcons were within two points with under 2:30 to play, but a turnover on one end led to a three-pointer from Joell Idrovo on the other end for Mercer, making it 78-73, Mustangs, with 1:37 to play. The lead grew to six after two free throws with 30 seconds remaining, but Latrell Mark (Frederick, MD) buried a long three-pointer to make it a one-possession game with 12 seconds to play. Mercer went 1-for-2 from the line, and the Falcons couldn't answer the bell before the horn.
 
Mercer had three players in double-figures and shot 53.4% for the game, hitting ten three-pointers. Roman Frenklah led the way with 21 points, while Torren Greene scored 19 points and had five assists. Idrovo had 17 points and five steals.
 
For Lackawanna, the Falcons hit 47.8% from the floor but shot just 26% from downtown and 5-for-12 from the free throw line. Mark finished with a game-high 22 points and nine rebounds, while Simms had 16 points and six boards.
 
Mercer will now play in the Region XIX Division II championship game against Raritan Valley CC, which won earlier in the day over Middlesex College, 90-80. Lackawanna College's season falls short of the Region title game, as the Falcons end the year in the semis and finish 16-16 overall in their final season competing as a two-year squad.