Scranton Men Secure Landmark Basketball Title
SCRANTON, Pa. - The University of Scranton build up an 11-point second-half lead and held off a late rally to defeat Juniata College, 64-57, in the championship game of the Landmark Conference tournament Saturday evening at the Long Center.
Senior guard Randy Arnold (Doylestown, Pa./Central Bucks West) and freshman guard Zach Ashworth (Doylestown, Pa./Central Bucks West) scored 15 points apiece and junior forward Paul Hawk (Audubon, Pa./Methacton) added 12 points, including a clutch 3-pointer late in the game, as the Royals won their fifth straight and 12th of their last 14 games to improve to 19-7.
Juniata, which received a game-high 18 points from senior guard
Kyle Opitz (Gibsonia, Pa./Pine Richland) and 17 points and eight
rebounds from senior forward Brian Cannon (Fallston, Md./Fallston),
fell to 17-10.
After trailing by four at intermission, the Royals build up what
appeared to be a comfortable lead as Ashworth and Arnold hit
back-to-back 3 pointers to cap off a 13-4 run to give Scranton a
53-42 advantage with 9:05 left. The Eagles scored 10 straight
points, including five by Cannon and a 3-pointer by Opitz, to cut
the lead to one with 4:55 left.
The momentum swung back in Scranton's favor when senior guard Ryan Kirk (Lansdale, Pa./Lansdale Catholic) ended a six-minute draught by burying an NBA-range 3-pointer. Cannon answered with a lay-up and then hit one of two free throws to make it a one-point game with 2:33 left. On Scranton's next possession, Hawk, who also finished with 8 rebounds, hit a 3-pointer at the top of the key to keep the lead at four points, 59-55.
After the Eagles missed a 3-pointer on each of their next two possessions, Hawk hit one of two free throws with 29 seconds left to give Scranton a 60-55 lead. Arnold and senior center Tom Bicknell (Melbourne, Australia/St. Bede's College), who finished with eight points and 10 rebounds despite being saddled by foul trouble, canned two free throws apiece in the closing seconds to seal the victory.
For the game, Scranton connected on 21 of 24 free throw attempts (87.5 percent) to offset a 19-for-55 shooting effort (34.5 percent from the field), including just 9 of 30 in the first-half to fall behind 30-26 by intermission.
Juniata, which also struggled from the field, shot only 37.3 percent, including just 21.7 percent from beyond the 3-point arc.
Scranton's title was its 18th in school history. The Royals have won 17 championships in their previous affiliation with the Middle Atlantic States Collegiate Athletic Corporation. It was also the third conference title for the Royals under seventh-year head coach Carl Danzig.
Scranton is hoping its 19 wins and a conference championship are enough to merit a Pool B bid when the NCAA announces its Division III tournament field Monday. The Landmark Conference is in its first year of competition and does not have an automatic bid to the NCAA field.