Reading, Pa (January 31, 2024) - Alvernia University (14-6, 6-3) took down Messiah University (4-16, 0-9) 79-69, in a MAC Commonwealth men's basketball matchup Wednesday night at Alvernia's Jack McCloskey Court. 

The Golden Wolves took a commanding 51-37 lead at the half but the Falcons cut the lead to 14, 72-58 with just over five minutes left in the contest but Alvernia righted the ship and held out for the ten point victory. 

The win bumps the Golden Wolves to 14-6 overall and 6-3 in the MAC Commonwealth and the Falcons drop to 4-16 and 0-9. 

How it Happened

• The Falcons jumped out to an early, 16-7 lead in the first six minutes but the Golden Wolves came flying back with a 15-4 scoring run in the next four minutes of the game to grab the two point, 22-20 lead with ten to play in the half. Jakob Kelly led the way with four for Alvernia, Jalil Schenck added three and Nigel Cooke, Alex Cercado, Kegan Hertz and Malik Slay all tallied two during the run. 
• Alvernia started to pull away in the next five minutes of the half, ripping off 15 of the next 23 points to extend the lead to nine, 37-28. Schenck led with seven during the run and Cercado added eight for the Golden Wolves. 
• The Golden Wolves continued to control the game in the final five minutes of the half and took a 14 point lead into the half. Cook tallied five and Robert Mullan added a three ball during the stretch as Alvernia took a 51-37 lead into the break. 
• Alvernia came out of the half and pushed its lead to 21 in the first ten minutes of the second half with a 13-6 run to take a 64-43 lead. Kyle Gordon and Kelly both tallied four in the first ten minutes and Cooke added three. 
• The Falcons bounced back with a scoring run of their own in the next five minutes to cut the lead to 14, 72-58 with just over five minutes to go in the contest. 
• Messiah made a late push in the final minutes of the contest, scoring 11 of the final 18 points to pull within ten but it was not enough as the Golden Wolves secured the 79-69 victory over the Falcons. 

Inside the Box Score

• Nigel Cooke led the way for the Golden Wolves with a game high 15 points. Cooke shot 6-8 from the floor and 3-4 from beyond the arc. 
• Jalil Schenck recorded 14 points and Alex Cercado tallied 13 points and added five rebounds and a game high five assists. 
• Jakob Kelly rounded out the double digit scorers for Alvernia with ten points and went 5-8 from the floor. 
• The Golden Wolves shot just under 50% from the field against the Falcons and went 30-61 for 49.2%. 
• Alvernia's bench outscored Messiah's 36-18 on the night with Schenck leading with 14. 
• The Golden Wolves held at least a ten point lead for the final 22 minutes of the contest. 

Of Note 

• Alvernia extended the overall series lead to 22-13 over the Falcons. 
• The Golden Wolves now sit in a tie for third place in the MAC Commonwealth. Alvernia is tied with York at 6-3 in conference play. 

Up Next 

• The Golden Wolves are back in action on Saturday when they host York College in a men's and women's double header. The women will tip off at 1:00 PM and the men are slated to start at 3:00 PM.