Reading, PA - After overcoming an early, nine point deficit on Saturday at Albright, the Falcons were unable to hold a second-half lead in falling 61-59 to the Lions. The loss drops Messiah into a third-place tie in the Commonwealth with Lycoming and Arcadia, with each team having identical 7-5 records after Saturday's games.

The Falcons (11-7) broke away from a halftime tie on Saturday to take a 40-36 lead with 13:25 left to play. Their advantage was built on the back of nine points from Brad Bolen, as Messiah outscored Albright 14-10 to start the second-half.
 
But Albright responded in convincing fashion, running off ten-straight points over the next 3:34 to go up 46-40. The Lions' Andrew Marshall scored all eight of his points in the streak, hitting a pair of three-pointers and two free-throws.
 
Dave Singleton scored in the paint for two of his 22 points to give Albright a 55-47 lead with 5:26 left, though Bolen scored four-straight to bring the Falcons close once more.
 
With 3:06 left in the game, Taylor Groff hit a pair of free-throws to draw Messiah to within 57-54 and, after two free-throws from Albright, Scott Bolen hit a three-pointer to make it a 59-57 game. With less than 90 seconds to play, Singleton provided the game's biggest bucket with a two-point jumper to extend the Lions' lead to 61-57.
 
On the Falcons' ensuing possession, Zac Hoy was fouled and sent to the line where he hit both attempts to make it a two-point game.
 
After a Singleton miss, the Falcons called timeout to set up a potential game-tying or go-ahead score. But Singleton managed to deflect a close offering from Taylor Groff, as the Lions were fouled with a second remaining. A missed free-throw from Cornell Mickens left no time for another shot from Messiah, as they fell 61-59.
 
The loss for Messiah—just the second in their last six games—snaps a three-game win streak. It also accounts for the Falcons' second defeat to Albright this season, as the Lions improve their second-place league record to 9-3.
 
Like their first meeting with the Lions, the Falcons fell behind in the first-half. The game was tied 13-13 with 8:04 left before the break, at which point Albright ran off nine-straight points to take a 22-13 lead. Guard Pedro Perez accounted for six of those nine points, as Messiah's defensive attention on Singleton and Kyle Jordan allowed for their teammate's scoring chances.
 
Not shaken by the deficit, Messiah quickly fought back. The Falcons allowed just four more points in the first-half, as they scored 13 points to even the score at 26-26. Brad Bolen provided the equalizer in dramatic fashion, hitting a three-pointer with a second remaining before the break.
 
Bolen's hot shooting led the Falcons after the break, as they built the aforementioned lead. He would go on to lead Messiah with 22 points, with Derek Mosley adding 14 points on 6-12 shooting. Scott Bolen scored 10 points.
 
Hoy and Groff combined for just 3-14 from the field, as Albright worked tirelessly to hound Hoy as he ran the Falcons' offense. The result was, in part, a slowed attack that saw Messiah get to the foul line just 10 times. Albright managed 26 free-throw attempts, as they outscored Messiah by 14 points (21-7) at the charity stripe.
 
Singleton's 22 points were aided by a perfect 10-10 showing at the free-throw line, as he finished as the only double-figure scorer for the Lions.
 
In addition to keeping pace as the league's second-place team, Albright improved to 16-3 with the win.
 
Messiah still has six games left to play in the Commonwealth, with their next two games being against Lycoming and Arcadia—the two teams they are tied with in the conference standings. The Falcons have lost to both of those teams already this season, with each defeat coming on the road.
 
The Falcons' match-up with Lycoming is scheduled for Wednesday, Jan. 30, at 8:00 p.m.