et. Davids, Pa (February 7, 2024) - Alvernia University (15-7, 7-4) dropped a MAC Commonwealth men's basketball matchup to Eastern University (15-7, 7-4) 88-81, Wednesday night at Eastern. 

The Golden Wolves pulled within three, 75-72 with under five minutes to play in the contest but the Eagles closed the game out on a 13-9 run to secure the 88-81 victory over Alvernia. 

How it Happened

• After an early trading of baskets, the Eagles pushed the early lead to six, 14-8, with 15:00 to play.
• Both teams struggled to score over the next five minutes, but a Kegan Hertz layup for Alvernia brought the Golden Wolves within four, 16-12, with 10:34 to play in the half. Alvernia then cut it down to two, 17-15, on a Robert Mullan 3-pointer with 9:50 to play.
• The Eagles then pulled away with a quick 11-2 run over the next 2:20 to take a 30-19 lead with 6:25 to play in the half.
• A Mullan layup followed by a Jalil Schenck jumper and Kyle Gordon free throw got Alvernia back within six, 30-24, with 5:15 to play in the half.
• Alvernia then got within four, 34-30, on a Malik Slay layup with three minutes to play in the half. But, the Eagles ended the half on an 8-2 run to take a 42-32 into the half.
• Eastern came out of the half hot and recorded an 11-5 scoring run in the first five minutes of the second half to extend the lead to 16, 53-37. 
• The Golden Wolves responded with a 9-4 run of their own over the next three minutes to cut the lead to 11, 57-46. Jakob Kelly tallied four for Alvernia during the stretch and Hertz added three. 
• The Eagles and the Golden Wolves traded baskets back and forth for the next four minutes with Eastern holding a 70-58 advantage but a driving layup from Kelly cut the Eagles lead to ten for the first time since the start of the half. 
• The Golden Wolves then ripped off a 12-5 scoring run to pull within three, 75-72 after Kelly knocked down a turnaround jumper with under five to go. Kelly tallied seven during the run and Mullan added five more for Alvernia. 
• Three was the closest Alvernia got in the final five minutes of the contest as the Eagles ended the game on a 13-9 run with Zubair Lee tallying seven of the 13 to secure the 88-81 victory for Eastern. 

Inside the Box Score

• The Golden Wolves were led by Robert Mullan, who dropped a game high 22 points. Mullan went 4-5 from downtown and 7-12 from the field in a game high 38 minutes. 
• Jakob Kelly followed Mullan with 20 points and went 8-15 from the floor and added seven rebounds, four assists and a team high three steals. 
• Kegan Hertz rounded out the Golden Wolves players in double figures with ten. Hertz went 4-5 from the floor and added four boards. 
• Kyle Gordon led Alvernia with eight rebounds and added a game high three blocks. 
• The Eagles held the lead over the Golden Wolves for just under 39 of the 40 minutes. 

Of Note 

• The loss is the first time since the 2008-09 season that the Golden Wolves have been swept by the Eagles but Alvernia holds the overall series lead at 35-14 dating back to the 1981-82 season. 
• The Golden Wolves drop to 15-7 overall on the year and 7-4 in the MAC Commonwealth. Eastern improves to 15-7 and also 7-4 in the conference.

Up Next 

• Alvernia is back in action on Saturday when they travel to Widener for a MAC Commonwealth matchup with the Pride. The women tip off at 1:00 PM and the men are slated to tip off at 3:00 PM.