CRESSON, Pa. – Juniata College men's basketball handed Lynchburg a 101-95 overtime loss Saturday afternoon in the championship game of the Mount Aloysius Coaches vs. Cancer tournament.
The Hornets and Eagles moved into overtime tied at 88 apiece, and it was 10 minutes jam-packed of free throws, as 17 of the 20 points scored between the two foes were scored at the charity stripe.
Junior Alex Raymond (Hollidaysburg, Pa./Altoona Area), led the free throw shooting in OT for Juniata (3-0) sinking all six of his attempts, while sophomore Jeremy Hays (McMechen, W.Va./John Marshall) also put away all four of his OT charity shots. Senior Dan Sekulski (Douglassville, Pa./Daniel Boone), the tournament's MVP, also contributed three points at the line during the overtime period.
The Eagles came from behind in the contest for the first time this season, as Juniata was trailing the Hornets 31-26 at the 13 minute mark in the first half, but a set of Hays foul-shots and a junior forward Nate Higgins (St. Mary's, Pa./Elk County Catholic), an all-tournament team selection, layup helped put the Eagles within one point of Lynchburg (2-1).
Raymond pushed Juniata ahead with a trey and helped guide the Eagles to an eventual 38-31 lead. However, two Hornet three-pointers and a jump shot helped Lynchburg regain the lead at 42-40 right before intermission.
In the second half, Lynchburg led throughout the first 10 minutes, but Juniata managed to keep the Hornet lead to just a two-possession contest. A Brian Scholly (State College, Pa./State College Area) good three-point shot brought Juniata within one point of Lynchburg with just nine minutes left in the game. Just 30 seconds after Scholly, Hays threw-up a layup to give Juniata a 65-64 lead.
After the Hays layup, the lead changed hands seven times and with just three seconds on the game clock Juniata trailed by one. A Hornet foul brought Sekulski to the charity stripe, where he sunk one of his two opportunities to tie the game at 88.
Sekulski not only tied the game to grant the Eagles the opportunity to go on and take the win, he also led Juniata in points with 22 and rebounds with eight. Raymond wasn't far behind with 21 points as he swished three treys. Hays contributed 20 points, Higgins logged 15, and sophomore Kevin Stapleton (Indiana, Pa./Indiana) posted 10.
The Eagles travel to Washinton & Jefferson University for a 7:00 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 22, contest. Juniata returns home for a Saturday, Nov. 26, match against St. Vincent College.
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