DALLAS, Pa.—Misericordia University shot 52 percent from the field in the second-half to extend a 29-23 halftime lead into a 76-66 victory over The University of Scranton Tuesday evening at the Anderson Center.

Junior forward Ethan Eichhorst (Drums, Pa./Hazleton Area) led the Cougars with 24 points, senior guard Robbie Johnson (Jackson, Pa./Mountain View) added 18, and junior guard Jeff Slanovec (Easton, Pa./Freedom) added 11 as Misericordia improved to 4-0 on the season. 

Senior guard Zach Ashworth (Doylestown, Pa./Central Bucks West) led the Royals, now 2-1, with 20 points before fouling out and senior guard Luke Hawk (Audubon, Pa./Methacton) and senior forward Andrew Wynne (Fairport, N.Y./McQuaid Jesuit) contributed 12 and 11 points, respectively.

The Cougars led from start to finish in recording their first victory over the Royals since November 25, 2008, and their fourth in the all-time series.

Scranton continued to whittle away at the Cougar lead, but were never able to take a lead in the second half.  The Royals cut the lead to one with 7:18 left and trailed by only four, 67-63, with 1:01 remaining after a 3-pointer by sophomore guard Travis Farrell (Middletown, N.J./Christian Brothers Academy). 

Slanovec then came up with the big play of the night following Farrell's 3-pointer.  He made a lay-up and drew a foul on Farrell and converted the free throw with 56 seconds remaining to give Misericordia a 7-point cushion, 70-63. Freshman guard Matt Greene (Hokendauqua, Pa./Whitehall), Johnson and Eichhorst each canned two free throws apiece down the stretch to seal the victory.

For the game, Misericordia shot over 46 percent from the field and 75 percent from the free throw line, while the Royals made just 40 percent of their field goal attempts, including just 7 of 28 from beyond the 3-point arc (25.0 percent).

The Royals will break for the Thanksgiving holiday and return to action this Sunday, November 28, against Elizabethtown College beginning at 3:00 p.m. at the Long Center.

News & Notes:  Scranton still leads the all-time series with Misericordia, 14-4…Ashworth fouled out for just the third time in 86 career games…Wynne's 11 points were a season-high and just three from tying his career-best of 14 against Hunter College on January 2, 2010, at the Long Center.