NEW BRITAIN, PA (November 14, 2023) – Hitting the road for their second game of the new season, Susquehanna men's basketball visited Delaware Valley on Tuesday evening and came away with their first victory of the campaign. Outlasting the hosting Aggies in a close contest, the River Hawks came out on the winning end of a 60-54 scoreline.
The teams traded blows throughout the first half, with neither managing to pull too far ahead, as the biggest lead of the day came with 6:37 to go in the first half when SU went up eight points on a made three from Cooper Haberern. The redshirt sophomore had a breakout performance for the River Hawks, tallying a career-high 17 points with four made threes. He also led the squad in rebounding with eight boards. Accounting for four of the team's seven made threes in the game, he's averaged 14.5 points per game in the first two games.
The River Hawks did much of their damage from the charity stripe, going 15 for 21 from the foul line. Emezie Egeonu led the way with a six of eight showing, helping him to a 12-point night. The sophomore was also highly effective on the defensive end, grabbing five rebounds and adding two blocks and a steal to his stat line. Audric Washington matched him with two blocks of his own, with the group compiling four blocks and nine steals in an impressive defensive display that saw the River Hawks hold Del Val to just a 32.8 shooting percentage from the floor and a lowly 18.8 percent from beyond the arc.
The two teams were closely knotted throughout the night, with the score being tied nine different times. The final instance came at 51-51 with 5:44 left in the game. It would take more than a minute for the next point, which came on a free throw from Brandon Lavitt. Egeonu added two more to push the lead to three, and SU would hang on to that lead, making key free throws down the stretch. Haberern hit the dagger with 45 seconds left, draining his fourth three pointer to make the score 59-54 and push the lead to two possessions. He would make one final free throw to seal the 60-54 final score.
After starting the year with two road games, the River Hawks will finally get to take to the floor in O.W. Houts Gymnasium for their home opener on Friday, November 17 as part of the Susquehanna Tip-Off Tournament. They'll face Cabrini University at 8 pm, then taking on either Penn State Harrisburg or John Carroll on Saturday in either the consolation or championship bout.
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--RIVER HAWKS--
