Wilkes Men's Basketball Earns Gritty 85-77 Win over Albright
WILKES-BARRE – The Wilkes University men's basketball team came away with a hard-fought 85-77 victory over Albright College after entering halftime trailing by four points at the Marts Center on Tuesday evening as Tommy Bowen (Hummelstown, PA/Lower Dauphin) led four Colonels in double-figures for scoring.
The Colonels improved to 8-1 with the win.
Bowen got the scoring started 49 seconds into the contest with a layup following a three-point miss from Albright. The Lions tied the score with a jumper 25 seconds later to tie the game, countered by another layup from Bowen at 17:36. Albright took a 7-6 lead following a layup but the deficit was short lived as Bowen showed his range with a three-pointer assisted by Marcus Robinson (Swedesboro, NJ/Kingsway Regional) just under six minutes into the contest.
Both teams traded baskets over the next five minutes until Wilkes was able to take a two-point lead at 22-20 following yet another Bowen bucket at 5:33. Following the make, the Lions scored the following five points on a layup and a three-pointer to jump ahead 25-22 with over four minutes left in the half. The Colonels regained a two-point advantage after two Mark Mullins (Binghamton, NY/Chenango Valley) free throws and another Bowen layup, however Albright regained the lead with 3:07 on the clock with a three-point bucket to make the score 27-26.
Robinson hit a three to give Wilkes a 29-27 lead with 2:14 on the clock before the Lions finished the half on a 4-0 run as the Colonels found themselves down 33-29 as the horn sounded ending the first half.
Robinson started the second half with another three-pointer to cut the lead to one before the Lions converted a jump shot to take a 35-32 lead with 19:10 on the clock. Connor Evans (Cicero, NY/Cicero-North Syracuse) resized the lead to one yet again with a layup 28 seconds later. Albright continued to match made shots with a three pointer to take a 38-34 lead before Robinson hit another three of his own to cut the deficit to 38-37 two minutes into the half. Mullins converted two free throws after a missed Lions layup and a defensive foul to give the Colonels their first lead of the second half at 39-38 with 17:29 showing.
Albright converted a layup to retake a one-point advantage before Wilkes went on a 4-0 run with two Bowen layups to take a 43-40 lead. The Lions tied the score with a three-pointer at 14:49, but the Colonels responded with a Robinson layup and an Evans three-pointer to take a 48-43 lead forcing Albright to take a full timeout with 13:35 showing on the clock.
Wilkes continued to add to its lead as it expanded to 56-49 following a Clay Basalyga (Clarks Summit, PA/Abington Heights) three-pointer, Robinson three-pointer, and a Mullins jumper with the Colonels calling a full time out at 10:52. Following the timeout Albright converted a 7-0 run to tie the score at 56 over halfway through the final period.
After both teams exchanged layups Zach Walser (Marcellus, NY/Bishop Ludden) found Landon Henry (Hughesville, PA/Hughesville) for a three-pointer to give Wilkes a 61-58 lead. Basalyga followed hitting the back end of two free throws before Bowen pulled down an offensive rebound and converted the second-chance opportunity helping Wilkes to a 64-58 advantage.
The Lions chipped away with a layup to cut the advantage to four but Bowen continued his monster game with another layup off an assist from Robinson. Each team hit a layup to maintain the six-point Colonel advantage before Wilkes' defense stepped in as Robinson forced a turnover on the defensive end allowing Henry to hit another three with an assist from Bowen as Wilkes opened a nine-point lead at 71-62 with 5:30 left in the game. Robinson forced a second-consecutive turnover on the next Albright possession, which resulted in a missed opportunity before Mullins hit a layup, and following a missed Lions jumper, Mullins converted one-of-two free throws as the Colonels found themselves leading 74-62 with just under four minutes left.
Albright continued to push Wilkes, going on a 6-0 run to cut the lead to 76-68 with 2:10 on the clock, forcing the decision to whether the Colonels could convert their free throws. Wilkes was, going seven-of-nine to close out the victory, led by Evans going five-of-six.
Bowen led the way with 23 points, 13 rebounds, and four assists. Robinson finished with 18 points and five assists, Mullins added 17 points and five rebounds, while Evans contributed 10 points and three rebounds.
Jared Rappoport paced the Lions with a game-high 27 points to go with seven rebounds and three blocks. Samuel Majekodunmi added 13 points and five rebounds while Troy Smoot finished with 10 points.
The Colonels now enter a short break in the schedule, returning to action on Saturday, December 29th for Cross County Challenge, facing the University of Scranton at King's College starting at 1:00 p.m.
