Juniata led 5-4 in the early going, but a Matt Kieselowsky three-point shot touched off a 12-2 Albright run, the last six points coming on a three-point play and then a three point basket from Trevor Deeter, that gave the Lions a 17-7 lead just over four minutes into the game. The lead grew to as many as 13 points after a three-point play from Mike Boles gave Albright a 30-17 lead with 9:35 left in the half. Seven straight points pulled the host Eagles within six, 30-24, with 5:48 remaining before the break, but the Lions were able to maintain a 4-6 point lead the rest of the way and took a 39-34 lead to the locker room at the break.
Juniata closed the gap to just two points, 40-38, on a Travis Boyd lay-up two minutes into the second half. Albright answered with seven unanswered points, all coming from the free throw line, to extend the lead back to nine, 47-38, with 15:44 left in the ball game. Juniata came right back at the Lions, running off nine straight points and tying the game at 47 on an Aaron Chamberlin triple with 11:40 to play. Albright got five straight points from Tom Murphy to start a 16-5 run that gave the Lions an 11-point lead, 63-52, with 7:20 showing on the clock. The Eagles once again fought back, slowly cutting into the Albright lead and pulling within a single point, 68-67, with 2:10 left. A Deeter lay-up pushed Albright's lead back to three, but Nick Hagar answered at the other end with a jumper to make the score 70-69 Albright with 1:33 to play. After Deeter made one of two free throws, Travis Boyd hit a pair from the line for Juniata to tie the game at 71 with 31 seconds left in regulation. Albright's last shot was off the mark, and the game headed into overtime.
Albright got a free throw from Lee Walter and a bucket from Andy Winebrenner in the opening minute of overtime, then, after Juniata's third straight empty possession, Greg Conroy nailed a big three to put Albright up six, 77-71. Boyd's triple with 3:00 minutes left pulled Juniata within three, and the Albright lead was down to two, 79-77, with 1:01 remaining. Walter was fouled with 29 second left and made one of two free throws to give Albright a three-point lead, 80-77. Juniata misfired at the other end and Deeter came up with the crucial rebound. Conroy was fouled by the Eagles, and he calmly sank both tosses with 13 seconds left to put the game away for the Lions.
Deeter led five Lions in double figures with 23 points and also pulled down a team-high 10 rebounds. Conroy added 13 points on 4-7 shooting from the field, including a 305 effort from beyond the arc. Murphy had 12 points, Steltz 11, and Walter chipped in 10 for the Lions. Boyd led Juniata with 16 points, followed by Tommy McConnell with 14, Chris Jasiota with 13, and Brian Cannon with 10.
Newspaper Box Score Albright College vs Juniata College 2/18/06 4:00 at Huntingdon, PA (Memorial Gym) At Huntingdon, PA (Memorial Gym) ALBRIGHT COLLEGE 82, JUNIATA COLLEGE 77 ALBRIGHT COLLEGE (16-8, 9-5 Comm.) Trevor Deeter 9-13 4-8 23; Greg Conroy 4-7 2-2 13; Tom Murphy 4-7 4-5 12; Taylor Steltz 1-2 8-8 11; Lee Walter 3-6 4-8 10; Mike Boles 1-2 2-3 4; Kyle Brudvig 2-4 0-2 4; Matt Kieselowsky 1-7 0-0 3; Andy Winebrenner 1-4 0-0 2; Albert Medoro 0-2 0-0 0. Totals 26-54 24-36 82. JUNIATA COLLEGE (10-15, 5-9 Comm.) Travis Boyd 4-13 6-8 16; Tommy McConnell 5-13 4-7 14; Chris Jasiota 6-10 1-1 13; Brian Cannon 5-10 0-0 10; Kyle Opitz 2-3 2-2 7; Nick Hager 2-8 0-0 5; Jeff Byer 2-3 1-1 5; Neil Holloway 2-4 0-0 4; Aaron Chamberlain 1-3 0-0 3; Brent Ferko 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 29-68 14-19 77. Albright College.............. 39 32 11 - 82 Juniata College............... 34 37 6 - 77 3-point goals-Albright College 6-18 (Greg Conroy 3-5; Trevor Deeter 1-2; Taylor Steltz 1-1; Matt Kieselowsky 1-4; Andy Winebrenner 0-3; Albert Medoro 0-1; Tom Murphy 0-2), Juniata College 5-22 (Travis Boyd 2-8; Kyle Opitz 1-1; Aaron Chamberlain 1-2; Nick Hager 1-7; Brian Cannon 0-2; Tommy McConnell 0-2). Fouled out--Albright College-Taylor Steltz, Juniata College-Chris Jasiota; Jeff Byer. Rebounds-Albright College 40 (Trevor Deeter 10), Juniata College 33 (Chris Jasiota 10). Assists-Albright College 15 (Matt Kieselowsky 5), Juniata College 18 (Tommy McConnell 6). Total fouls-Albright College 22, Juniata College 25. A-1250