Reading, Pa. (Jan. 18, 2012) - In the quiet after matching a career high with 18 points Alvernia Unviersity senior Brian Nerney (Middletown, N.J./Red Bank Catholic) credited a raucous home crowd for carrying the Crusaders (11-4, 3-2) to a 67-61 win over crosstown rival Albright College (10-6, 1-4) Wednesday night in Commonwealth Conference men's basketball action at the Physical Education Center.

"The crowd won us that game," admitted Nerney.  "When they got that defense chant going in the second half that really helped us pick it up."

The crowd of 1,500-plus inspired the defense to hold the Lions to 30 points in the second half and 12 points in total below their season average.  The effort of the sixth man wasn't lost on the Crusaders' head man either.

"Unbelievable," said Alvernia head coach Mike Miller after his team's third straight win over Albright.  "And everyone's talking about it.  Officials, fans...everybody.  It got us to play better 'D' down the stretch.  I told our team to thank their classmates and any teacher, any faculty member who was here cause that was big."

The defense held Albright to four points over the first six minutes of the second half while the offense hit for 13 points, and the Crusaders erased a slim one-point halftime deficit and forged ahead to a 43-35 lead.  Nerney sparked it with six of the first eight--all in the paint--then capped the run with an inside jumper for the eight-point lead.

Albright came back--as the trailing team always seems to do in this rivalry--and closed the gap to one, 48-47 with 8:12 to play.

Nerney then assisted on a Cory Boone (Howard, Pa./Bald Eagle) layup, Josh Vargas (Allentown, Pa./Faith Christian) hit a 3, and Nerney finished a 9-2 run with back-to-back buckets to push the lead back to eight, 59-51 with 6:06 to play.

Then as the Crusaders failed to score on three straight possessions the Lions ran off six in a row to cut the lead to two.  Senior Derek Hall scored the first and last of the mini run and finished the night with a game-high 21 for the Lions.

Albright finally erased the deficit on a layup from Kyle Jordan that tied the game at 61-all with 80 seconds to play, but Alvernia answered with a twisting layup from Vargas, a Boone dunk--setup by a knifing drive from sophomore point guard Chris Davis (Norristown, Pa./Norristown)--and fittingly, a pair of Nerney free throws to close the scoring.

Vargas finished the night with 17 points and Boone added 14.  After Hall's 21 the Lions got 12 from Davd Singleton off the bench and 10 from Cornell Mickens.

"It was a team win," said Miller.  "Boonie had some big blocks on Hall.  Davis had some [steals] down the stretch.  Nerney had a stretch that was unbelieveable.  That's why I'm saying it was a team win."

"Everyone contributed to that win."

Including 1,500 who never stepped on the floor.

The Crusaders return to action Saturday at Elizabethtown.

Alvernia 67, Albright 61