BOX SCORE

Aston, Pa. (Feb. 9, 2008) – Alvernia College scored the first 10 points of the overtime period and held off Neumann College for a 67-62 win Saturday afternoon in Pennsylvania Athletic Conference men's basketball action at Bruder Gymnasium.

Senior forward Terrence Shawell (Pottstown, Pa./Pottstown) opened the extra frame with two free throws and led the Crusaders (12-9, 9-3 PAC) with 21 points and 16 rebounds. Neumann senior Derahn Patrick (Chester, Pa./Chester) led the way for the Knights (8-13, 6-7 PAC) with 24 points.

Alvernia broke a 31-all tie with 20 seconds left in the first half and held the lead until Mike Hitchens (Ardsley, Pa./Abington) hit his only 3 of the day with 14 seconds left in regulation. Alvernia had a chance for the win, but junior David Washington (Durham, N.C./Northern Durham) was whistled for a charge eliminating his layup with four seconds left.

Alvernia worked a set play for a layup attempt off the overtime tap, and Shawell was fouled starting the extra frame with free throws. Junior center Tyrone Bradley (Chester, Pa./Chester) followed with a free throw and a layup to push the lead to five with 3:40 left. Washington scored on a layup a minute later for a seven point lead and after a Patrick missed 3 senior Derek Dubbs (Ephrata, Pa./Ephrata) hit a corner 3 to put Alvernia up 63-53 with 2:17 left.

Neumann opened overtime with four missed shots and two turnovers during the Crusaders' pivotal run. Bradley reestablished the 10-point lead with 1:07 left and Neumann made it interesting with back-to-back buckets in the next 25 seconds to cut to six.

Alvernia turned the ball over on its next possession, but Neumann failed to trim to four until there were 16 seconds left. Washington hit two free throws to push back to six and Neumann got a single free throw for the five-point final.

Alvernia pieced together the first significant run of the day putting together six straight points to open up a seven-point lead in the early going. Shawell led the way with four points during the streak, and Patrick ended it with his first 3 of the day.

Neither team shot well from long range with Alvernia hitting just 2-of-18 and Neumann knocking down 6-of-27. Shawell missed all six of his attempts from long range and is 0-for-16 in the last two games. Conversely, the 6-3 junior is 16-for-16 from the free throw stripe in the same span.

Alvernia later pushed its first half lead to nine points, 20-11 with 9:42 on the clock, but Patrick scored five points during a 15-2 run that put the Knights up four. The lead grew to five on a Patrick 3, but Shawell scored five straight to erase it.

The teams exchanged free throws over the next two minutes and Alvernia freshman Eric Barefield (Ardmore, Pa./Lower Merion) scored the final tie-breaking bucket of the half.

The Alvernia lead grew back to nine midway through the second half and Neumann slowly trimmed it back to one after Patrick hit another 3 with 2:25 to play. Barefield scored on an acrobatic layup and Hitchens cut back to one with two free throws. Dubbs scored on a layup for the Crusaders on the next possession and Neumann used a pair of timeouts to set up a final play that ended in Hitchens' 3 from the right elbow.

Bradley and Barefield both finished with a dozen points and Hitchens scored 14 and brother Eli Hitchens (Ardsley, Pa./Abington) added 13.

Alvernia will return home to face Misericordia University in a women's and men's doubleheader. Both teams will wear pink warm-up shirts in pregame to support the Women's Basketball Coaches Association's “Think Pink” program to raise awareness for the fight against breast cancer.

Alvernia 67, Neumann 62 (OT)