The Albright College men's basketball team did their job and got a little help across town, earning a Commonwealth Conference playoff spot with a 73-64 victory over Elizabethtown on Saturday.

With Lycoming beating Hood 72-60, the Lions needed rival Alvernia to beat Messiah in order to win the tiebreaker. The Crusaders held off Messiah 69-63, and Albright will now travel to Hood on Monday for the 4/5 play-in game.

It was Senior Day for four Lions- Pedro Perez, Kyle Jordan, Sam Marrella and Reuel Moore- who were gunning for a third consecutive Commonwealth Conference playoff appearance.

It was Albright's freshmen who really put the team on their backs however, as Josh Marquez (7-of-8 FG, 6-of-7 FT, 20 points, five assists) and Sameen Swint (5-of-6 FG, 15 points) were a combined 12-of-14 (85.7%) from the floor.

Sophomore Calvert Gantz also blocked four shots to set a new school single-season mark of 68.

The game was close late, but Perez stole a pass at the top of the key and went the other way for a three-point play and a 57-51 lead. Marquez hit a pull-up jumper and then hit Swint behind the arc to make it 64-58 Albright.

Swint hit two three-pointers midway through the first half, but both were answered by Elizabethtown's Will Schlosser.

Marquez drove hard left with 9:09 left in the first half to tie the game at 20-20. He then went left again and added the extra free throw for a 26-21 lead.

Marquez' lefty up-and-under move gave Albright a 30-23 lead. Both Perez and Jordan had tip-ins late in the first half as the Lions led 38-29 at the break.

Elizabethtown's Andrew Mantz was a force for much of the second half, tipping in a missed free throw and then assisting Lee Eckert to cut the Albright lead to 38-36. He later completed an and-one to make it 46-43 Lions.

Albright improves to 13-12, 9-9 Commonwealth, while the Blue Jays see their season end with a mark of 8-17, 5-13.