Lebanon Valley 76, Lycoming 75 (OT)
 
LVC Starters
Light, Bugg, Anderson, Orr, Boccanfuso
 
Lyco Starters
James, Jefferson, Doughty, Newbold, Wallace
 
How It Happened
Lebanon Valley is moving on to the 2018 MAC Commonwealth Tournament Championship Game thanks to a 76-75 overtime victory over Lycoming in an instant classic at Sorrentino Gymnasium on Wednesday night, Feb. 21.
 
Ricky Bugg put on a show in the semifinal contest, scoring a team-high 23 points for the Flying Dutchmen (17-9). Sam Light added 17 points, including the game-winning free throws in the extra session, while Caleb Barwin and Zach Tucker turned in big time efforts by combining for 20 points off the bench. Andy Orr grabbed a team-best 11 rebounds and blocked three shots.
 
Trailing 70-67 with 3:12 remaining in overtime, LVC executed down the stretch and played tenacious defense in putting together a 6-0 run that proved the difference in picking up the team's third victory over the Warriors (19-7) this season.
 
Orr converted a layup while being fouled off a pretty pass from Light to cut the deficit to one with two and a half minutes left and the Dutchmen grabbed their first lead of OT when Bugg gathered in his own rebound and laid in a tough shot off glass at the 1:44 mark.
 
Tucker grabbed a much-needed defensive rebound on the other end following a Ronald Jefferson miss and Light knocked down a pair from the charity stripe after being fouled on the ensuing possession to make it 73-70 with little more than a minute remaining.
 
After Darius James made the first of two free throws on Lyco's next time down the floor, the two-time defending MAC Commonwealth champs came up with a backcourt steal that led to Jefferson's game-tying layup with 47 seconds left on the clock.
 
The teams traded the lead when Tucker went 1-of-2 from the foul line and Jefferson connected on a jumper from the top of the key that put the visitors out in front 75-74 with less than 30 seconds left but Light was hit in the lane while trying to get off a shot on LVC's final possession with five ticks remaining.
 
He stepped to the line and rattled home both attempts. Lycoming pushed the ball up the floor and TJ Duckett got off a last-gasp attempt from 25 feet but his shot came up short and fell harmlessly to the floor, sealing the Lebanon Valley victory in front of a frenzied hometown crowd and sending the team to its first conference championship game in seven years.
 
The Dutchmen led by as many as 14 with 8:26 remaining in the second half but the visitors used a 9-0 run in the final seven minutes to draw to within striking distance in the closing moments. A Jefferson 3-ball with nine seconds left in regulation completed the impressive comeback and forced overtime.
 
LVC led 34-29 at the break and grabbed its largest advantage of the opening half at 25-11 when Andrew Eberhart completed an old-fashioned 3-point play at the 9:15 mark.
 
Playoff Picture
In the second MAC Commonwealth Tournament Semifinal matchup, top-seeded Albright defeated No. 5 Arcadia 58-45, setting up a MAC Commonwealth Championship Game that pits longtime rivals in No. 2 Lebanon Valley against the Lions. The Dutchmen and Albright split the regular season series, with LVC emerging victorious in Reading in early January before the Lions returned the favor at Sorrentino Gymnasium earlier this month. The winner of Saturday's title game will earn an automatic bid to the NCAA Division III Championship Tournament.
 
Inside the Numbers
- LVC advanced to its first MAC Commonwealth Tournament Championship Game since 2011.
- The Dutchmen swept the season series from Lycoming, winning all three matchups this winter.
- Wednesday's contest was Lebanon Valley's second overtime game of the year after the team dropped a double-OT decision at Franklin & Marshall in November.
- LVC shot 39.4 percent from the field, while the Warriors managed a 47.7 percent shooting output.
- Both teams shot better than 30 percent from 3-point territory.
- Each squad struggled a bit from the foul line, with the Dutchmen shooting 68.2 percent and Lyco shooting 64.3 percent.
- Lebanon Valley's reserves outscored the Warriors' bench 27-13.
- The rebounding battle was tight, with Lycoming grabbing 43 and LVC pulling in 40 boards.
- Ricky Bugg played one of the best games of his career in scoring a team-high 23 points. He knocked down four 3-pointers and added seven rebounds.
- Sam Light moved into a tie with LVC Hall-of-Famer and current VCU head coach Mike Rhoades on the program's all-time scoring list. Light netted 17 on Wednesday to bring his career total to 2,050.
- Light added five boards and game-highs of five assists and four steals.
- Andy Orr grabbed a team-high 11 rebounds to go along with seven points on 3-of-4 shooting and a game-best three blocks.
- Caleb Barwin was the third Dutchman to reach the double-digit scoring mark with 11 points.
- Zach Tucker was strong off the bench and posted nine points, four assists, and four rebounds.
- Will Boccanfuso corralled five boards and swiped three steals, while Andrew Eberhart and Collin Moore added key baskets when needed.
- Alex Newbold recorded a double-double for Lyco with 10 points and 16 rebounds.
- Ronald Jefferson scored a game-high 24 points for the Warriors.
 
Who's Next?
The Dutchmen travel to top-seeded Albright for the 2018 MAC Commonwealth Championship Game on Saturday afternoon, Feb. 24.

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