DOYLESTOWN (PA) – DeSales University shot 57.7 percent from the field in the second half and was 30-for-40 from the foul line for the afternoon as the Bulldogs overcame a 15-point, second-half deficit and defeated host Delaware Valley, 84-75, in a rematch of last year's Freedom Conference Championship Game.

It was the first time the two met since the 2013 title contest in Center Valley when the Aggies captured the crown for the second time in three years with a 77-72 win. They also defeated DeSales for the 2011 championship.

Saturday's result left the team tied atop the Freedom standings with 3-1 record. Overall, the Bulldogs improved to 9-6 while Delaware Valley fell to 8-7.

The story of the first half was Delaware Valley's ability to connect from beyond the arc.  The Aggies hit six 3-pointers in the first 10 minutes to open up a 27-17 lead.  Jay Donovan and Nick Sullivan each hit a pair while Francis Arnold and Zach Sibel accounted for one each.  Sullivan connected on another trey after Chris Moran corralled an offensive board to put the Aggies up 13 with 9:18 left in the half.

DeSales then went on a 6-0 run that included a three of its own from Cody Deal and a steal and a layup from Kyle Hash to make the score 30-23.  After Donovan made one of two free throws for Delaware Valley, Arnold and Sibel each connected from long range again for a 37-25 lead with just under six minutes to play. 

The Bulldogs were able to capitalize on their free throws for the rest of the half to keep the game close as the Aggies took a 44-39 advantage into the break.  The Aggies finished the half 10-for-14 (71.4 percent) from 3-point land (DeSales was 1-for-5) while DeSales was 16-for-20 from the free throw line (Delaware Valley was 4-for-6).

The Aggies came out of the locker room and picked up where they left off as they connected on their first four shots, all of which were 3-pointers, to extend their lead to 56-41 in the opening 2:03 of the second stanza.  From there, the Bulldogs put together a 10-2 run behind six points from Andrew Kohler to get the deficit back down to seven.  Donovan responded for Delaware Valley with a trey of his own and after a Deal layup for DeSakes, Sullivan hit three free throws for a 64-53 lead with 11:57 to play.

DeSales then put together a 15-2 run over the next 6:10 to take its first lead of the game at 68-66 with 5:48 left in regulation.  The run was highlighted by nine points from Mike Coleman, who came off the bench for the Bulldogs. After Coleman hit another pair of free throws to extend the lead to four, a pair of jumpers from Chris Moran and Sullivan for Delaware Valley knotted the score at 70-70 with 4:45 on the clock.

Paul Palmer responded for DeSales with a fast-break layup at the other end and Coleman hit one of two from the line to put his team up by three. Sullivan and Arnold each made one of two from the line, with a Coleman layup in-between, to keep the difference at three, 75-72 with 2:18 to play.  After a Hash layup put the Bulldogs up five, Arnold drove the lane for the Aggies but was denied at the rim by Travis Bryan.  Delaware Valley was forced to foul at this point and DeSales made seven of its final ten free throw attempts down the stretch to seal the victory.

While the Bulldogs were 30-for-40 from the charity stripe, the Aggies only went to the line 13 times and were able to convert on nine.  DeSales outrebounded Delaware Valley, 41-25, and finished the game shooting 51 percent from the field compared to 43.1 percent for the Aggies.  Delaware Valley shot 16-27 (59.3 percent) from 3-point land while DeSales was 2-for-20 (10 percent).

Coleman came off the bench for the Bulldogs and led the team with 25 points including a 13-for-16 performance from the free throw line. Hash had 21 points to go with eight rebounds, four assists, and five steals while Deal had 15 points. Bryan paced the defense with 11 rebounds and three blocks.

Arnold stood out for the Aggies with 22 points, seven assists and three steals while Sullivan was right behind him with 20 points. The two combined for nine 3-pointers. Sibel hit a trio of treys and finished with 11 points while Donovan also hit three from outside and had 10 points on the afternoon.