BOX SCORE  | HIGHLIGHTS

Reading, Pa. (Feb. 22, 2014) – Senior guard Chris Davis (Norristown, Pa./Norristown) hit a big 3 and came up with a key steal leading Alvernia University (18-7, 13-5) to a 69-63 win over Messiah College (19-5, 13-5) Saturday afternoon in Commonwealth Conference men's basketball action at Jack McCloskey Court.

The win makes Alvernia the #2 seed in the Commonwealth Championships.  The Crusaders get a return visit from the third-seeded Falcons on Wednesday at 7:00 p.m. in one of the two semifinals.

"Big," was the only way Alvernia head coach Mike Miller could describe the 5-9 Davis.  "He hit a big 3, and had big assists.  That's why it's nice to have a senior point guard in big games like this."

Davis weaved around a screen at the top of the key with 90 seconds left to play in a 3-point game.  When the Falcons' defense sagged to cover the passing lanes, Davis let fly on a 22-footer that hit all net and doubled the Alvernia lead to 65-59.

A minute later and again in a 3-point game, Messiah point guard Zac Hoy drove into traffic at the top of the arc.  The Crusaders collapsed and Davis emerged out of the pack with the ball and Hoy draped on his back giving the foul.

Davis hit 1-of-2 free throws and Messiah's Scott Bolen missed about a 30-footer in front of his bench.  Brian Parker (Chichester, Pa./Chichester) pulled down the rebound and hit two free throws with 15 seconds left for the final margin.

Alvernia and Messiah split the season series with each team winning on its home floor—the Crusaders improved to 11-0 at home and 9-0 in league games, a note that's not lost on the coach who gets to host Wednesday's semifinal.

"It's important that it's home," said Miller of his playoff opener.  "Our crowd has been good and our energy's real good at home."

Davis hit a 3 on the Crusaders' first possession of the second half to put the hosts up 16 points, 39-23, but the Falcons put the home hosting in jeopardy with a 22-12 run that cut Alvernia's 53-41 lead down to 65-63 with under a minute to play.

The Falcons—who hit 7-of-24 3s on the night—started the run with a Brad Bolen 3 and went 4-for-7 from long range to fight back into it.

"We went through that before," said Miller of his team nearly losing a 16-point lead.  "They are pretty resilient"

After the Davis 3 with 1:25 left, Brad Bolen knocked down a jumper and the Crusaders committed a 10-second violation.  Messiah went to David Fernandez who scored in the paint to set the 65-63 score.

The resilient Crusaders got 1-of-2 free throws from Charles Cooper (Parkesburg, Pa./Octorara) then Davis' steal on Hoy for a 2-possession cushion.

Davis, Parker, and Lamont Clark (Parkesburg, Pa./Octorara) finished with 16 points each and Kahlil Bennett (Old Bridge, N.J./Old Bridge) scored 13.  Parker led the way on the glass with 14 rebounds as the Crusaders held a 42-37 advantage in rebounding.

"Again, we outrebounded them and we had less turnovers," said Miller.  "Little things like that are important in a game like this."

Davis played all 40 minutes and handed out seven assists with just one turnover.  He pulls within four assists of tying Chris Alba's single-season record of 170 helpers.

Fernandez led the Falcons with a game-high 23 points, Brad Bolen had 14, and Hoy finished with 13.

Stevenson (13-4) earned the top seed in the conference playoffs and will host the winner of the 4/5 game on Wednesday.  Albright College (9-9) is #5 by virtue of a tie-breaker over Lycoming, and will travel to #4 Hood College Monday evening for a first-round game.

The winners of Wednesday's semifinals will meet next Saturday for the title and the automatic berth into the NCAA Championships.

Alvernia 69, Messiah 63