Albright scored the first five points of the game, only to see the hosts Crusaders respond with seven straight, capped by a Zac Smith three, to lead 7-5 six and a half minutes in. The Lions A three-point play from Taylor Steltz and a triple by Andy Winebrenner sparked a 12-3 Albright run that gave the Lions their largest lead of the half, 17-10, with 6:41 until intermission. The Albright lead stood at six, 26-20, with 3:37 left in the half, but Susquehanna would rally to tie the score at 27, then take its first lead since the early going on a Chad Lauer lay-up with 1:27 remaining before half-time. Albright regained the lead 33-31 on a Steltz bucket, and after a Susquehanna free throw cut Albright's lead to one, Kieselowsky drained a three at the end of the half to send the Lions to the locker room with a 36-32 lead. Steltz led all scorers with nine first-half points while Kieselowsky added eight. Todd DeNapoli led Susquehanna with eight points.
The second half started just as the first half ended, as Tom Murphy knocked down a three to put the Lions on top by seven, 39-32. The lead would grow to as many as nine, but the Crusaders would not go away. Susquehanna hung around, chipping away at the Lion lead, and pulled within two, 50-48, on a Matt Effler lay-up with 10:40 to play in the game. The Lions got the lead back to seven, and six straight Kieselowsky points helped extend the lead to eight, 60-52, with five and a half minutes to go. Once again Susquehanna came back, cutting the deficit to three, 63-60, with 3:30 showing on the clock. Murphy tipped in a miss to put Albright back up by five, and then followed a Crusader foul shot with a three-point play that extended Albright's lead back to seven, 68-61. Lauer's three pulled the Crusaders within four, but Kieselowsky answered with his own three at the other end, and Susquehanna would get no closer to the Lions the rest of the way. The Crusaders would manage just two more points in the final three minutes, while the Lions knocked down enough free throws to put away the win.
Kieselowsky's 24 points and seven assists were both game-highs. Murphy finished with points for the Lions, while Steltz added 10 points and three helpers. Trevor Deeter and Lee Walter each had seven rebounds to lead Albright. Effler and Sean Ulichney each finished with 12 points to pace the Crusaders.
Newspaper Box Score Albright vs Susquehanna 01/25/06 8:00 p.m. at Selinsgrove, PA - O.W. Houts Gymnasium At Selinsgrove, PA - O.W. Houts Gymnasium ALBRIGHT 76, SUSQUEHANNA 66 ALBRIGHT (12-5, 5-2 Comm) Matt Kieselowsky 9-16 4-7 24; Tom Murphy 5-8 2-3 13; Taylor Steltz 3-6 4-5 10; Andy Winebrenner 1-3 3-4 6; Derek Kehoe 2-3 1-2 5; Kyle Brudvig 1-2 3-4 5; Lee Walter 2-2 1-3 5; Albert Medoro 2-4 0-0 4; Mike Boles 0-3 2-2 2; Trevor Deeter 1-3 0-0 2; Greg Conroy 0-3 0-0 0. Totals 26-53 20-30 76. SUSQUEHANNA (6-12, 2-5 Comm) Sean Ulichny 5-6 2-4 12; Matt Effler 3-9 6-8 12; Todd DeNapoli 2-4 3-4 9; Chad Lauer 2-5 2-2 7; Zac Smith 2-6 1-2 7; Andy Gaebel 2-6 2-2 6; Brad Okonak 2-5 0-0 5; Matt McDevitt 2-4 0-0 4; Chad Cohle 1-3 0-0 2; Mike Cavallo 1-3 0-0 2; Joel Patch 0-2 0-0 0. Totals 22-53 16-22 66. Albright...................... 36 40 - 76 Susquehanna................... 32 34 - 66 3-point goals-Albright 4-11 (Matt Kieselowsky 2-3; Tom Murphy 1-2; Andy Winebrenner 1-2; Greg Conroy 0-1; Taylor Steltz 0-3), Susquehanna 6-19 (Zac Smith 2-5; Todd DeNapoli 2-3; Brad Okonak 1-2; Chad Lauer 1-2; Chad Cohle 0-2; Mike Cavallo 0-1; Matt McDevitt 0-1; Andy Gaebel 0-3). Fouled out--Albright-None, Susquehanna-Sean Ulichny. Rebounds-Albright 35 (Lee Walter 7; Trevor Deeter 7), Susquehanna 30 (Matt Effler 6). Assists-Albright 13 (Matt Kieselowsky 7), Susquehanna 12 (Todd DeNapoli 5). Total fouls-Albright 22, Susquehanna 29. A-253