With the possibility of playing his final game ever in the John Long Center, senior forward Matt Swaback (Kingston, Pa./Wyoming Seminary) helped The University of Scranton men's basketball team take a huge step toward hosting a Landmark Conference playoff game.
Swaback buried a trio of 3-pointers in the final four minutes and the Royals erased an eight-point deficit with five minutes to play to beat Susquehanna, 74-71, on Senior Day at the Long Center. The victory clinches a Landmark Conference playoff spot for Scranton.
The Royals trailed, 61-53, with 5:13 to play after Susquehanna senior guard Spenser Spencer (Seattle, Wash./Lakeside) buried a 3-pointer. Scranton immediately began its comeback with a 3-pointer from freshman guard Ross Danzig (Clarks Green, Pa./Abington Heights/Blair Academy, N.J.). Swaback then hit a pair of 3-pointers on consecutive possessions while the Crusaders managed only a trio of free throws during that span.
Trailing 64-62, Danzig then hit a free throw, the Scranton defense came up with a stop and senior forward Luke Hawk (Audubon, Pa./Methacton) converted a layup to give the Royals a 65-64 lead with 2:06 remaining, capping a 12-3 run.
Spencer hit a pair of free throws to give the lead back to Susquehanna temporarily, but Swaback canned the last of his four 3-pointers on the day to give the Royals the lead for good at 68-66. Junior guard Travis Farrell (Middletown, N.J./Christian Brothers Academy) then hit four straight free throws and Danzig and sophomore guard Tommy Morgan (Greenlawn, N.Y./Chaminade) added one each to render a Susquehanna lay-up and 3-pointer meaningless in the closing seconds.
The victory improves Scranton to 16-6 overall and 9-2 in the Landmark Conference. The Royals remain in first place, two games clear of second-place Moravian with three conference games remaining.
The victory came in the final regular season home game for seniors Swaback, Hawk, Dan Hilferty (Ardmore, Pa./Episcopal Academy), Nick Jaskula (Jenkintown, Pa./Jenkintown) and Edmond O'Connell (Somers, N.Y./Kennedy Catholic). Victories in two of their final three conference games would give the Royals top seed and home-court advantage in the upcoming Landmark Conference playoffs.
Farrell led Scranton with 20 points and seven steals, Swaback finished with 14 points and five assists, Danzig also had 14 points and Hawk had 13 points and seven assists in the win.
Scranton needed a 6-2 run at the end of the first half to go into the locker room down five, 35-30. But whatever adjustments the Royals made paid dividends as they shot 58.3 percent (14-for-24) and committed zero turnovers in the second half. They needed that type of offensive production as Susquehanna shot 63.2 percent (12-for-19) after the break, but turned the ball over nine times, leading to 15 Scranton points.
For the game, the Royals shot 24-for-44 (54.5 percent), their best shooting performance of the season. But the Crusaders were even better, connecting on 26 of 40 shots (65.0 percent), the best performance by a Scranton opponent this season.
Spencer led Susquehanna (11-9 overall, 6-5 Landmark) with a game-high 24 points and four steals, junior forward J.T. Wilson (Sparta, N.J./Pope John XXIII Regional) added 13 points, sophomore center Harley Sellinger (Mill Hall, Pa./Central Mountain) had 12 poitns and sophomore guard Mike Perillo (Holmdel, N.J./Holmdel) added 10.
The Royals return to action on Friday, Feb. 10, when they travel to King's Point, N.Y. to face Merchant Marine Academy at 7:30 p.m. They will take on Drew University in Madison, N.J. on Saturday, Feb. 11, at 4 p.m.
--ROYALS--