SELINSGROVE, PA - A volcanic eruption near the end of the first half flowed into a steady second half for Susquehanna men's basketball Friday night, defeating King's College of Pennsylvania by a 73-62 score to close out day one of the Susquehanna Tipoff Tournament.The River Hawks advance to Saturday's late-afternoon championship game against Marymount at 3 p.m. following the 1 p.m. consolation contest between King's and Penn State Brandywine. The Saints defeated the Lions in Friday's opening game, 65-55. 

The guest Monarchs looked to have things under control with just over one minute left in the first half, holding on to a 30-26 lead. What they didn't anticipate was three consecutive 3-pointers from Susquehanna in the final minute as field goals from Cooper Haberern, Allen Cieslak, and and buzzer beater from Billy Anderson turned the game on its ear as it was the River Hawks who led at the break, 35-32.

A restful River Hawks squad, following their season-opening win at Haverford on Saturday, improved to 2-0 thanks to 40.6 percent shooting for the game, making 28-of-69, including 11 3-pointers. King's, meanwhile, hit on 40.0 percent shooting off of a 24-of-60 night, including 5-of-16 from long range. The beginning of the second half proved to be steady, though the River Hawks got their motor going thanks to a 12-point run that put them up in double digits with a 64-51 lead. They bumped their lead up to 16 on three different occassions before the game was through, with the last coming just over two minutes left on a Billy Anderson layup to lead 73-57. Anderson's bucket proved to be the team's last field goal of the contest and the icing on his 20-point game cake, netting an even 20 to go with five rebounds, shooting 9-of-14 from the floor and 2-of-2 from 3-point range.

Both Anderson and Allen Cieslak came off the bench and served as the team's two leading scorers, with Cieslak scoring 12 points after making a game-high four 3-pointers. These numbers totaled 32 of the team's 47 bench points, something fans have taken notice of in terms of Susquehanna's depth. Cooper Haberern, another bench scorer, was third on the team with nine points, drilling three triples. Brandon Lavitt and Marcus Mitchell each finished with eight points, with Lavitt making 4-of-8 from the floor to go with four assists and Mitchell hitting a pair of threes in a 3-for-7 night. Susquehanna held a narrow 40-38 lead in rebounds, with Jackson Van Wagener leading that brigade with ten on the night. The River Hawks defense had much to do in the win, generating 9 steals, including a high of three from Van Wagener and two from Lavitt, while swatting away seven shots, including three from Audric Washington, who managed four points with five boards. The River Hawks had a perfect touch from the line in the few trips they had, making 6-of-6, while King's fared 7-of-13. 

Susquehanna is off to a 2-0 start for the first time in three seasons. Their last matchup with the Saints took place in 2012-13 in which MU delivered a 68-58 win during the Johns Hopkins Blue Jay Invitational on Jan. 2, 2013.