The teams were deadlocked at 65 after 40 minutes of play, sending the game to extra time. Luke Ledyard gave Etown an early 67-65, but Albright answered when Murphy knocked down a three, his fifth of the night, to give the Lions a one-point lead, 68-67. After a Kris Kieres bucket put the Blue Jays back on top, it was Phil Hall's turn for the long ball, as he drained a three to make the score 71-69 Lions with 3:24 left in overtime. Albright held a one-point lead, 73-72, and had possession with a minute and a half to play. Matt Kieselowsky found Conroy for a deep three with one second on the shot clock to put the Lions up four with 1:08 on the clock, and the Blue Jays were unable to respond. Conroy would sink five of six free throws in the final minute to sew up the win for the Lions.
Both teams struggled offensively at the beginning of the game, as the game was physical from the get-go. Etown got untracked and pulled ahead by nine, 17-8, on a Ledyard tip in with 8:32 left in the half. The Lions trailed 20-13 when Murphy got going, knocking down back-to-back triples to pull Albright within a point, 20-19, with just under six minutes remaining until the break. Albright kept things close for the rest of the half and finally drew even at 26 on a John Bernat three with 2:20 on the clock. Etown out-scored Albright 7-3 over the final two minutes, however, and held a 33-29 lead at intermission.
Albright took its first lead since the early going on a Tom Murphy three-ball two and a half minutes into the second half that made the score 39-38. That would be the beginning of a back and forth second period that five lead changes and seven ties, with neither team holding more than a four-point advantage over the final 18 minutes. Albert Medoro's fast break lay-up and subsequent free throw completed a three-point play to give Albright a 64-60 lead with 4:38 to play, but the Lions could not pull free of the Blue Jays. Neither team would score for two minutes before Chad Piersol hit a three with 2:16 on the clock to pull Etown within one, 64-63. After Medoro made one of two free throws and Brian Goodwin hit two freebies at the other end, the score was all even at 65 with 1:10 to play. Neither team was able to convert in its final possession, sending the game to overtime.
Andre Murphy's 19 points came on 6-10 shooting from the floor, including a 5-8 effort from three-point range. The Lions as a team shot 54.5% from beyond the arc (12-22) in the game. Conroy finished with 14 points, eight coming in the extra session. Tom Murphy had 11 for the Lions, while Medoro had nine points and a team-high 10 rebounds. Albright dominated the glass, grabbing 45 rebounds to just 29 for the Blue Jays. Kieres led Etown with 20 points, including a 5-10 performance from three-point land. Ledyard had 16 for the Blue Jays and Michael Schatzmann added 10
Newspaper Box Score Elizabethtown College vs Albright 1/27/07 8:00 pm at Bollman Center - Reading, PA At Bollman Center - Reading, PA ALBRIGHT 81, ELIZABETHTOWN COLLEGE 73 ELIZABETHTOWN COLLEGE (6-12, 1-7 Comm) Kris Kieres 7-15 1-2 20; Luke Ledyard 8-14 0-0 16; Michael Schatzmann 4-9 0-0 10; Chad Piersol 3-7 2-2 9; Greg Brizek 1-7 5-8 7; Mike Church 2-4 2-4 6; Brian Goodwin 1-6 3-4 5; Bryce Rodgers 0-0 0-0 0; Chris Fairbanks 0-0 0-0 0; Phil Schaffer 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 26-62 13-20 73. ALBRIGHT (7-11, 2-6 Comm) Andre Murphy 6-10 2-2 19; Greg Conroy 3-6 6-7 14; Tom Murphy 3-8 4-5 11; Phil Hall 4-7 0-0 9; Albert Medoro 3-10 3-5 9; Kyle Brudvig 3-5 2-2 8; John Bernat 2-2 0-0 6; Matt Kieselowsky 2-4 0-1 5; Matt Bazsika 0-0 0-0 0; Justin Plummer 0-0 0-0 0; C.J. Jewell 0-1 0-0 0; Alex Schneider 0-0 0-2 0; Michael Boles 0-3 0-0 0. Totals 26-56 17-24 81. Elizabethtown College......... 33 32 8 - 73 Albright...................... 29 36 16 - 81 3-point goals-Elizabethtown College 8-22 (Kris Kieres 5-10; Michael Schatzmann 2-5; Chad Piersol 1-2; Mike Church 0-1; Brian Goodwin 0-2; Greg Brizek 0-2), Albright 12-22 (Andre Murphy 5-8; Greg Conroy 2-4; John Bernat 2-2; Phil Hall 1-3; Tom Murphy 1-2; Matt Kieselowsky 1-2; C.J. Jewell 0-1). Fouled out--Elizabethtown College-None, Albright-None. Rebounds-Elizabethtown College 29 (Bryce Rodgers 4; Michael Schatzmann 4; Mike Church 4), Albright 45 (Albert Medoro 10). Assists-Elizabethtown College 17 (Brian Goodwin 4; Michael Schatzmann 4; Greg Brizek 4), Albright 17 (Matt Kieselowsky 8). Total fouls-Elizabethtown College 23, Albright 19. A-739