Reading, Pa. (Dec. 1, 2021) - Alvernia University (6-3, 1-0) survived a second half push by York College (3-3, 0-1) to open its MAC Commonwealth schedule with a win as the Golden Wolves defeated the Spartans 76-69 on Wednesday night in men's basketball action at Alvernia. 

The Golden Wolves saw a 17 point lead shrink down to just five points with 2:20 remaining, but, Alvernia's defense locked in and held off the Spartans - the MAC Commonwealth preseason favorite - as Alvernia came away with the win. 

"Defensively, when we had to come up with stops, we did," said Head Coach Mike Miller. "The defense clicked, the guards were all over the place helping each other out. It was tough for [York] to get shots off at times."

The Golden Wolves defense put on one of their best performances so far this season. While the Golden Wolves were out-rebounded by York, they forced 22 turnovers and collected 15 steals. They also had eight blocks on the night, five of which belonged to Avery Walker. 

The first points of the night came off a steal by Mickeel Allen that resulted in a layup by Keon Taylor to give Alvernia the 2-0 lead after 30 seconds of action. 

The Golden Wolves and Spartans traded shots over the next two minutes, but a layup from Malik Green at the 16:56 mark gave Alvernia its first two possession lead of the night at 10-5.

Alvernia maintained the two possession lead for the next five minutes until York got back within one off a 3-pointer by Travis Stoll at the 11:11 mark to make it an 18-17 game in favor of the Golden Wolves. 

The Golden Wolves worked their back up over the next four minutes and a layup by Green off a Rece Harman steal with 7:05 left in the first half gave Alvernia it's largest lead thus far, 29-21.

With 90 seconds left in the first half, Jacob Stoudt knocked down a three to put Alvernia up 36-24, but the Spartans scored the final points of the half to make it a 36-29 game in favor of Alvernia going into the half. 

The Golden Wolves came out of the half firing, with back-to-back layups from Green and Jakob Kelly, as well as a free throw by Kelly, to put Alvernia back up by 12, 41-29. 

A jumper and 3-pointer by Green on Alvernia's next two possessions worked Alvernia's lead up to 15, 48-31, with 17:18 to play. 

Alvernia's press began to pay off when back-to-back steals by Avery Walker allowed Alvernia to extend its lead to 17, 50-33, with nearly 15 minutes to play. But, York continued to work.

The Alvernia offense struggled over the next four minutes, and York took advantage. The Spartans rallied back and a layup from Riley Dobraniecki with 11:17 left on the clock put York within five, 53-48. 

A 3-pointer from Stoudt with just under 11 minutes remaining breathed some life back into Alvernia, and less than two minutes later Alvernia's lead was back up to nine following a Keon Taylor jumper. 

The Golden Wolves continued to lead by nine with 4:31 to play after Green sunk a pair of free throws to give Alvernia the 69-60 advantage. But, the Spartans went on a quick 5-0 run to bring it within four, 69-65, with 2:22 to play. 

A made free throw by Taylor put Alvernia back up by five, 70-65, and a 3-pointer by Stoudt with 48 seconds remaining gave Alvernia some breathing room, 73-65.

A massive block by Walker with 34 seconds left kept the Spartans out of reach. 

After a series of free throws, Alvernia went on to take the 76-67 win.

"Even though we played a tough non-league schedule and ended up at 5-3, everything we did was to get ready for this game," said Coach Miller. "York was [favored to win the conference]. We knew it was going to be a dog fight, and we prevailed."

The Golden Wolves scored 21 points off turnovers, and held York to just 10 3-point attempts after the Spartans were averaging 22.2 shots from beyond the arc coming into the game. 

Taylor led Alvernia's offense with 23 points and five assists along with three steals. Green added 20 points and a team-high seven rebounds. Stoudt came off the bench to score 18 for the Golden Wolves.

The Golden Wolves continue on with MAC Commonwealth play on Saturday at Stevenson. The Mustangs dropped an overtime decision to Hood College tonight to open their MAC Commonwealth schedule. 

"No one is an easy win in league play. We always have to come ready to play. But, to get this first one is nice," said Miller.