Men's Basketball Rallies Back to Beat Juniata, 69-55
December 1, 2012

Men's Basketball Rallies Back to Beat Juniata, 69-55

BETHLEHEM, Pa. – The Moravian College men's basketball team defeated Landmark Conference rival Juniata College, 69-55, Saturday afternoon. The Greyhounds improved to 4-1 and 1-0 in the Landmark Conference while the Eagles fell to 5-1 and 0-1 in conference.

Box Score

BETHLEHEM, Pa. – The Moravian College men's basketball team defeated Landmark Conference rival Juniata College, 69-55, Saturday afternoon. The Greyhounds improved to 4-1 and 1-0 in the Landmark Conference while the Eagles fell to 5-1 and 0-1 in conference.

Junior guard Kevin Stapleton would get the first points of the game for the Eagles after scoring a layup five second after tipoff. Junior guard Kenny Gula answered with a layup of his own for Moravian. Junior forward Brian Scholly then hit a rainbow three to put the Eagles up 5-2 early.

Senior guard Garrett Johnson ended the Eagles run after a steal and a breakaway layup to make the score 10-4, three minutes in. Stapleton and Scholly then hit back-to-back three's to make the score 16-6, Juniata. Junior centers Cameron Cullen and Blake English and senior guard D.J. Strayhorn recorded their first points to make the score 16-12, Juniata six minutes into the contest.

Moravian would cut the Eagles lead to one point after a steal and basket from sophomore guard Izel Dickerson to make the score 22-21 with nine minutes remaining in the half. Strayhorn then sliced through traffic on his way to the tough layup to knot the contest back at 23 with 7:39 left in the half. A layup from Stapleton and a three from the corner by Scholly put Juniata back up 28-23 with 5:39 to play in the half.

With under three minutes left in the half, senior guard Alex Raymond and Gula exchanged three-pointers to make the score 32-28, Eagles. Cullen then hit a turnaround layup to make the score 35-30 with just under a minute to play in the half. That would be the score heading into the locker room.

Moravian shot 54-percent from the field while Juniata shot 39-percent from the field in the first half. The Greyhounds held the rebounding edge, 17-16, while the Eagles committed two less turnovers. Strayhorn led Moravian with eight points while Scholly put up 20 points for Juniata in the first half.

The Greyhounds would start the second half with a three-pointer from Gula, but Stapleton responded with a three of his own. Scholly followed that up with another three to make the score 41-31, Juniata two and a half minutes in. Cullen then drove baseline and powered in for the layup to make the score 41-35.

Dickerson brought the ends to within three after a rainbow three off a nice pass from Strayhorn to make the score 41-38, Eagles five minutes into the second half. After exchanging scores, Johnson dialed up from long range to make the score 47-45, Eagles with nine minutes left in the game. Layups from English and Gula knotted the game back up at 49, but a three from Stapleton pushed Juniata back out in front 52-49 with 7:21 to play.

Freshman forward Matt Bosch would give Moravian its first lead of the game after drilling a three-pointer with six minutes to play. Cullen followed that up with a layup to make the score 55-52, Greyhounds. Free throws from Strayhorn made the score 57-52 with 4:47 left in the contest.

A three-pointer from Raymond ended the Hounds run, but Johnson answered with a jumper at the other end to make the score 59-55 with four minutes left in the game. After an empty possession for the Eagles, English answered at the other end with a layup while getting fouled. He converted on the three-point play to make the score 62-55 with 2:49 remaining in the game. Dickerson followed that up with a huge three from the corner to make the score 65-55 with 1:26 left in the contest. Moravian wouldn't let Juniata get any closer as the Greyhounds went onto win 69-55.

The Greyhounds had four players score in double figures, led by English's 12 points and nine rebounds. Gula put up 11 points while Strayhorn had ten points and five assists. Dickerson scored ten points to go with his four boards while Cullen had eight points and eight rebounds. Johnson added nine points and five rebounds.

Scholly finished with 23 points, five rebounds and four assists while Stapelton had 15 points and six boards. Junior guard Jeremay Hays dished out six assists while Raymond had seven points.

Moravian shot 52-percent from the field while Juniata shot 34-percent from the field in the game. The Greyhounds held the rebounding edge at 39-27 while the Eagles committed two less turnovers.

Moravian returns to action Monday, December 3rd as they travel to Ursinus College. The contest is scheduled for 7 p.m.