BOX SCORE

Reading, PA (Feb. 21, 2006) – Senior Zach Straining (Paxtang, PA/Central Dauphin East) totaled 20 points and Chris Talley (Royersford, PA/Spring Ford) scored a game-high 23 points to lead top-seeded Alvernia College to an 89-78 win over #5 Gwynedd-Mercy Tuesday evening in a Pennsylvania Athletic Conference Men’s Basketball semifinal at the Physical Education Center.

            Talley scored 13 points in the first half and pulled within 10 points of 1,000 for his career.  Straining tallied 12 points after the break and was one of three Crusaders to pull down six rebounds.  Alvernia (22-4) will host #2 Wesley College, a 68-67 winner over #3 Arcadia in the other semifinal, Thursday at 7:00 p.m.

            Alvernia stormed out to a 24-6 lead behind torrid offense, but Gwynedd-Mercy (12-15) got just as hot on its end taking a 41-37 lead less than a minute before the half.  Junior guard Garrett Etzel (Shillington, PA/Governor Mifflin) nailed one of his two first-half 3s and Talley hit a free throw to knot the score at 41-all at halftime.  GMC took a pair of four-point leads early in the second half, and Straining snapped a 54-all tie with three straight layups to give the hosts a lead it did not relinquish.

            Neither team shot particularly well from the free throw line.  The Griffins finished 12-for-21 from the stripe and Alvernia knocked down 23-of-39 from the charity stripe.  By contrast, both teams were tremendous from the floor.  Alvernia shot over 60 percent, and GMC finished with a 53-percent effort.

            Alvernia, a two-time PAC Champion, is in the Final for the ninth time.  Wesley is making its first Finals appearance.  This is the second meeting between Alvernia and Wesley in the PAC Championships.  Alvernia won the first meeting, 88-50 in the 2002 quarterfinal.  The Crusaders swept both meetings with the Wolverines this season.

            Alvernia started Tuesday’s game with a layup from Ryan Finger (Lancaster, PA/Lampeter Strasburg) and following a Talley 3 and a layup, the hosts were up 7-0 with only 48 seconds gone.  Etzel’s layup at 16:21 put Alvernia up 11 points, 15-4, and following a Rashid Santiago (Allentown, PA/George School) jumper, Etzel, senior Lamar Brickus (Coatesville, PA/Coatesville), and Straining each connected from downtown to push the gap to 18 points, 24-6.

            Alvernia hit 6-of-10 from 3-point range in the first half and 10-of-18 for the night with five different players hitting two each from long range.

            GMC burned its second time out of the game at the 13:56 mark and came out of the stoppage with 10 straight points to cut the gap to eight.  Senior Rick Haas (Wildwood, NJ/Wildwood Catholic), who scored all 12 of his points in the first half, started the streak with a jumper and a 3 and sophomore forward Kevin Lauer (Philadelphia, PA/St. John Neumann) capped it with a layup.

            Alvernia came back with four straight to push the gap to 12 and had it back to a dozen on Straining’s second 3 of the night.  Santiago answered with a jumper that started a stretch of seven straight for the guests and following Haas’ layup at 4:18, GMC was within three, 34-31.  Straining hit a pair from the stripe, but the Griffins answered with five straight capped by a Francis Bowe (Phoenixville, PA/St. Pius X) 3 from the right corner to tie the score at 36-all.

            Haas answered a Talley free throw with a jumper to give the visitors their first lead of the night, 38-37 and Frank Barder (Harleysville, PA/Souderton) hit a long 3 with the shot clock running down to push the gap to four, 41-37, 50 seconds before the break.

            Lauer scored on back-to-back possessions coming out of the break as the Griffins pounded the offensive glass early in the second half..  The 6-6 sophomore scored again inside for a 47-43 lead, but Alvernia responded with a pair of 3s around a Chris DelBrocco (Philadelphia, PA/St. John Neumann) jumper to knot the score at 49-all.

            GMC got three straight from freshman forward Haven Wroten (Philadelphia, PA/Prep Charter) and Alvernia answered with five straight to regain the lead, 54-52.  DelBrocco scored on a reverse layup for the final tie of the night before Straining scored six points on the block for a 60-54 lead.

            Finger’s layup pushed the lead to eight and Straining’s free throws at 10:40 put Alvernia up 64-54.  DelBrocco nailed one of his two 3s on the next GMC possession to spark six straight points, but Brock and Brickus connected from downtown during a 10-4 Alvernia run that pushed the gap back to 10 points with 3:49 to play.

            DelBrocco, who reached 1,000 career points on a second half free throw, hit his second 3 from the right corner as GMC scored five straight to cut the lead in half, but Alvernia made enough free throws down the stretch to deny any comeback.

#1 Alvernia 89, #5 Gwynedd-Mercy 78