With the win, Lebanon Valley (13-8, 7-3 CC) snapped a three-game home losing streak and kept pace with Widener for first place in the Commonwealth standings. Widener defeated Elizabethtown on Saturday.
Junior forward Bubba Mills led Susquehanna (13-7, 5-5 CC), which lost its third straight conference game, with 16 points while senior forward Phil Sander posted 14 points along with 11 rebounds and three blocks.
Junior guard J.D. Byers added 15 points and a season-high 10 assists for the Dutchmen. Junior forward Steve Buzinski sophomore forward Dan Hogan chipped in with seven points and seven rebounds apiece while senior guard Evan Harlor dropped in nine points. Harlor is now 24 points away from becoming Lebanon Valley’s 28th career 1,000-point scorer.
The Crusaders trailed by as much as 15 early in the second half but came all the way back to cut the lead to three (64-61) with 4:30 remaining following a three-pointer by Chad Lauer. However, LVC held Susquehanna scoreless the rest of the way, as the Crusaders missed their final five field goals and their last three foul shots. LVC was able to hold on for the victory despite going the final 7:01 without a field goal.
Susquehanna held four leads over the opening 4:45, but a Kasyan jump shot with 14:30 to go in the opening half broke a 7-7 tie and gave the Dutchmen the lead for good. LVC’s lead reached double digits (33-23) with 2:37 remaining in the half following an 11-2 Dutchmen run, and the Valley took a 38-28 lead into halftime.
A 7-2 LVC spurt at the start of the second half gave the Dutchmen its 15-point advantage (45-30) with 15:27 remaining. However, Susquehanna slowly chipped away at the deficit, and a 10-2 Crusader run made it 64-61. After Byers hit a free throw with 4:12 left, Susquehanna had three chances to make it a one-point game. But Mills missed a layup with 3:25 left and a three-point attempt by senior guard Nick Griffiths with 3:09 to go was off the mark. Then with 2:34 on the clock, Mills missed the front end of a one-on-one foul shot opportunity.
After Hogan hit 1-of-2 free throws to make it 66-61 with 1:54 remaining, Susquehanna had a pair of chances to cut into the lead, but senior guard Chris Zimmerman missed a three-pointer with 1:30 to go and Sander missed two free throws with 39 seconds remaining. Byers put the game away with a pair of foul shots with 24 seconds left.
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Newspaper Box Score Susquehanna vs Lebanon Valley 2/7/04 2:00 p.m. at Annville, Pa. (LVC Gymnasium) At Annville, Pa. (LVC Gymnasium) LEBANON VALLEY 68, SUSQUEHANNA 61 SUSQUEHANNA (13-7, 5-5 CC) Bubba Mills 7-12 0-2 16; Phil Sander 7-11 0-3 14; Dan Rathmell 3-5 0-0 8; Colin Horan 2-4 1-1 6; Chris Zimmerman 2-11 0-2 5; James Barile 2-4 0-0 4; Walter Fowler 1-2 2-2 4; Nick Griffiths 2-9 0-0 4; Sam Snyder 0-2 0-0 0; Rob Okonak 0-1 0-0 0; T.J. Parry 0-2 0-0 0. Totals 26-63 3-10 61. LEBANON VALLEY (13-8, 7-3 CC) Dave Kasyan 8-14 1-3 19; J.D. Byers 3-10 8-9 15; Evan Harlor 3-9 0-0 9; Jeff Kline 3-5 1-1 7; Steve Buzinski 3-5 1-4 7; Dan Hogan 2-3 3-6 7; Brad Stigelman 1-3 2-2 4; Matt Polinsky 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 23-50 16-25 68. Susquehanna................... 28 33 - 61 Lebanon Valley................ 38 30 - 68 3-point goals-Susquehanna 6-23 (Dan Rathmell 2-4; Bubba Mills 2-2; Colin Horan 1-3; Chris Zimmerman 1-6; Nick Griffiths 0-6; Rob Okonak 0-1; James Barile 0-1), Lebanon Valley 6-16 (Evan Harlor 3-7; Dave Kasyan 2-2; J.D. Byers 1-6; Matt Polinsky 0-1). Fouled out--Susquehanna-None, Lebanon Valley-None. Rebounds-Susquehanna 32 (Phil Sander 11), Lebanon Valley 40 (Dave Kasyan 9). Assists-Susquehanna 13 (Nick Griffiths 4), Lebanon Valley 17 (J.D. Byers 10). Total fouls-Susquehanna 19, Lebanon Valley 15. A-1512