WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. – The Arcadia University men's basketball team battled back from an 11-point deficit to take the lead late in the second half, before falling 69-67  to Lycoming in a MAC Commonwealth Championship Game rematch. The Knights fell to 8-8 on the season, including 3-4 in MAC Commonwealth play, the Warriors improved to 15-2 overall and 7-1 in conference play.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED: The Knights held a slim lead for the opening 5:30 courtesy of threes from senior Ryan Kelley and junior Brandon Thompson and a pair of layups from sophomore Evan Slone. A 21-9 run by Lycoming put the Warriors in control with a 28-19 lead with 5:37 to go until the break. That margin would be cut to 32-27 by half's end.
 
After extending its lead to 11 just over a minute and a half into the second half, the Knights went to work chipping away at the lead. It took just over three minutes for the Arcadia deficit to be cut back to four as sophomore Phil Pierfy scored seven points as part of a 9-2 run to bring the score to 40-36 in favor of the hosts just under five minutes into the second stanza.
 
Trailing 50-43 midway through the frame, the Knights regained a one-point led on the heels of an 8-0 spurt sparked by a Kelley three and capped by a pair of free throws from freshman Kishan Patel. Lycoming retaliated with eight straight points of its own to reclaim a 58-51 lead with 5:12 to go. The Knights pulled back within two on the heels of a pair of free throws from sophomore Kyle Reilly with 21 ticks on the clock; however 3-6 free throw shooting aided the hosts in holding on.
 
ARCADIA LEADERS: Pierfy led the Knights with a game-high 14 points on 4-6 shooting, while Kelley and Slone each contributed 12. Slone led the way with seven rebounds, while Kelley tied sophomore Josh Scott with a team-leading three assists.
 
LYCOMING LEADERS: Chris Wallace and David Johnson led the Warriors with 12 points each on 5-10 shooting. Wallace completed the double-double with a game-best 12 rebounds, while Nyk King led all players with six assists.
 
INSIDE THE NUMBERS: The Knights shot 21-63 (33.3%) from the field, including 8-28 (28.6%) from three, while converting 17-24 (70.8%) at the charity stripe. The Warriors shot 37.1% (23-62) from the field and 4-14 (28.6%) from distance, while converting 19-27 (70.4%) from the free throw line.