SELINSGROVE, Pa. – It was another exciting and gritty matchup between the Susquehanna University men's basketball team and the University of Scranton Wednesday night. The season series was split as Scranton (15-5, 7-2 LC) turned around a 13-point second half deficit into a 66-62 overtime win over Susquehanna (13-7, 6-3 LC) in Landmark Conference action at the John Long Center in Scranton.
 
The loss drops the River Hawks into sole possession of third place while Scranton and Drew University are tied for first in the Landmark standings. Scranton currently holds the tiebreaker over Drew as the Royals earned the win in the first go-around.
 
Susquehanna 62, Scranton 66
 
How It Happened
First Half

• Susquehanna and Scranton traded two-point leads in the first five minutes before the River Hawks ramped it up with a 10-0 run to lead 16-6 at 10:49 as the hosts missed their next five shots and turned the ball over twice.
• An old-fashioned three-point play by Ryan Ems pulled the Royals within seven but Susquehanna would stretch its lead to 11 at 2:46 on a bucket by sophomore Jay Martin (Columbia, Md./River Hill) before heading into halftime up 27-17.

 
Halftime

• Neither team fared well from downtown in the first 20 minutes as the two sides combined for 1-of-21 with junior captain Bryce Butler (Abingdon, Md./Suffield Academy) hitting the lone three-ball.
• Susquehanna dominated the boards by a 24-16 margin behind five rebounds from Martin while the River Hawks also benefitted from 10 points off of seven Scranton miscues.
• Butler and Jackson Danzig led all scorers with seven points as the River Hawks shot 38.7-percent compared to the hosts' 29.2-percent.

 
Second Half

• A 5-2 start by SU allowed the visitors to increase their lead to 32-19 at 18-10 behind buckets from junior captain Matt LaCorte (Westfield, N.J./Westfield) and sophomore guard Danny Frauenheim (Point Pleasant Beach, N.J./Point Pleasant Beach).
• However, Scranton warmed up and used an 18-4 run over the next six minutes to regain a one-point lead at 12:07 as Danzig fueled the run with three three-pointers while the River Hawks only made two of their next eight shots and threw the ball away three times.
• The Royals went on to build a four-point lead – their largest of the game thus far – at 7:15 thanks to a Jack Brockett three-pointer. However, Susquehanna put together a 9-0 run behind five points from Butler to retake the lead (50-45) with 5:17 remaining in the game.
• Scranton continued to work and tied the game back up at 52-52 following a pair of free throws by Stephen Braunstein with 1:08 left in regulation.
• After a 30-second timeout, the River Hawks had back-to-back opportunities in an 18-second span to take the lead but both attempts missed and Scranton's Kyle DeVerna grabbed the defensive board.
• Following back-to-back full timeouts (one by each team), Braunstein put up a last-second three-point attempt that was off the mark and the teams headed into overtime.

 
Overtime

• The River Hawks never gained any traction in the extra frame as Scranton built a six-point lead with an 8-2 start on three-pointers by Brockett and DeVerna.
• Susquehanna cut the lead down to two twice with 38 seconds to go and again with 16 ticks left before the Royals sealed the win with a 3-for-4 effort at the line in the final seconds.

 
Inside the Box Score

• Susquehanna grabbed a season-high 46 rebounds to boast a +12 rebounding margin as well as a 13-1 margin in second chance points. Sophomore guard Lukas Yurasits (New York, N.Y./Berkeley Carroll) led the way on the glass as Yurasits finished with a game-best eight boards.
• The River Hawks were limited to a season-low five three-point field goals made for the second time this season. SU is 5-6 this season when held to 10 or less three-pointers.

 
Top Performers

• LaCorte, Frauenheim, and Butler all finished with 12 points for the River Hawks while Yurasits contributed seven points and eight rebounds.
• Frauenheim also added six assists while Butler picked up a season-best five steals.
• Martin ended his night by matching his career-high of seven boards.
• Danzig led the way for Scranton with a game-best 16 points and six rebounds as the Royals earned their third win in their last four games.

 
Up Next for the River Hawks

• Feb. 8 vs. Elizabethtown (11-8, 4-5 LC) – Selinsgrove, Pa. / Orlando W. Houts Gymnasium – Landmark Conference game – 2:00 p.m.

 
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