MALVERN, Pa. --- The Moravian College men's basketball team rallied from a 19-point first half deficit to post a 76-75 overtime victory at Immaculata University in non-conference action Wednesday evening on the road.
The Greyhounds, now 5-2 overall, had three players in double figures led by senior forward Oneil Holder, who had 21 points and 12 rebounds for his second double-double of the season and 14th of his career. Senior guard Jimmy Murray tossed in 16 points to go with three rebounds, three assists and a pair of steals while junior guard C.J. Barnes had 11 points and six boards.
Senior guard Nicholas Casazza and freshman forward Steve Breeman each scored eight points off of the bench with Casazza grabbing four rebounds and Breeman pulling down three boards. Junior forward John Hargraves added six points while senior guard Will Brazukas and sophomore guard Matt O'Connor each scored three points with Brazukas adding two rebounds and O'Connor contributing three boards and a pair of assists. Junior guard Mike Martino dished out a game-high four assists for the Hounds.
Moravian struggled shooting the ball, going just 27-of-68 from the floor, 9-for-37 on three-pointers and 13-of-15 at the foul line. The Blue and Grey did have a 40-39 edge in rebounds and forced the Mighty Macs into 13 turnovers.
Immaculata jumped out to a 7-0 lead before Holder made a pair of free throws to get the Greyhounds on the scoreboard two and a half minutes into the contest. The Hounds would knot the score at 9-9 on a three-pointer from Murray. Barnes connected on a three-pointer at the 11:23 mark as the Blue and Grey trailed 19-14 before the Mighty Macs went on a 14-0 run to stretch the advantage to 33-19 with 5:30 until the half. Moravian countered with a 15-4 run to head to the locker room trailing just 37-29.
The Hounds would pull within three-points, 40-37, on a lay-up by Holder three and a half minutes into the second half. Casazza pulled Moravian within a point with a three-pointers, and he would give the Greyhounds their first lead of the game, 46-45, on a jumper with 13:02 on the clock. O'Connor followed with a three-pointer and a jumper from Barnes pushed the Hounds' edge to 51-45. Immaculata answered and retook a 61-56 lead with 4:58 remaining. Holder would knot the score at 61-61 with a three-pointer at the four-minute mark, and Holder's lay-up with 34 seconds to play tied the contest at 65-65 and forced overtime.
Moravian scored first in overtime on a basket from Holder, and a lay-up by Brazukas had the Hounds leading 69-65 with four minutes to go. The Mighty Macs would move ahead, 72-70, with 2:06 on the clock but a three-pointer by Barnes just 12 seconds later had the Blue and Grey back in front. Casazza pushed the advantage to 76-72 with three free throws with 59 seconds on the clock before Immaculata pulled within a point eight seconds later on a three-pointer. Neither team was able to score as Moravian earned the hard-fought win.
The Greyhounds are scheduled to return to action on Saturday, December 8 in a non-conference game versus Marywood University beginning at 4:00 p.m. in Johnston Hall.
