SELINSGROVE, Pa. --- The Moravian College men's basketball team dropped a 98-89 decision at Susquehanna University in Landmark Conference action Wednesday evening.
The Greyhounds slip to 16-8 overall and 9-4 in Landmark Conference play with the loss. The game also set up the Hounds and the River Hawks meeting in the 2019 Landmark Conference Semifinals on Wednesday, February 20 but the site of the game will be determined after the regular season finale on Saturday.
Moravian had four players in double figures led by senior forward Oneil Holder, who had 18 points to go with five rebounds and a pair of steals. Junior guard C.J. Barnes added 16 points and eight rebounds while senior guard Jimmy Murray netted 14 points and junior forward Addis Ralph scored 10 points.
Senior guard Nicholas Casazza contributed eight points while sophomore guard Matt O'Connor had seven points and two boards. Senior guard Will Brazukas tossed in six points to go with three assists while junior guard Elijah Davis had four points, two rebounds and a pair of blocked shots. Sophomore guard Keith Otto and Shon Wilson and freshman forward Steve Breeman all had two points while junior guard Mike Martino dished out a team-high four assists.
The Greyhounds went 30-for-60 from the floor, 7-for-26 beyond the three-point line and 22-for-26 at the foul line in the contest.
Barnes opened the game with a lay-up before Susquehanna took a 7-4 lead. Moravian answered with a 6-0 run as two free throws from Ralph had the Hounds up 10-7 with 14:18 left in the first half. Murray connected on an old fashioned three-point play for a 15-12 edge a minute later before the River Hawks went on an 17-4 run to build a 29-19 advantage. Susquehanna pushed its edge to 12 points before a three-pointer from Barnes had Moravian down 44-39 with 3:20 before the intermission. The River Hawks pushed back ahead, and with both teams shooting over 55 percent in the first half, Susquehanna would head to the locker room with a 57-46 lead.
The Greyhounds came out with a hot shooting hand to start the second half with Davis getting the scoring started. O'Connor drained a three-pointer to cap a 15-4 run to start the half as the Blue and Grey pulled even at 61-61 just over five minutes into the half. Just over a minute later, Holder scored on a fast break lay-up to give Moravian a 65-63 lead. The Hounds trailed, 69-68, after a three-pointer by Ralph with 11:44 remaining when the River Hawks went on a 15-2 run to build am 84-70 advantage. Moravian would close within six points, 91-85, on a three-point play by Holder with 2:34 remaining but Susquehanna scored the next six points to pull away one final time.
The Hounds will finish the regular season with a Landmark Conference contest at Elizabethtown College on Saturday, February 16 with tip-off set for 4:00 p.m.
