Royals Lock Up Landmark Tournament Berth Behind Strong Performances Again From Danzig, Boken

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BETHLEHEM, Pa.—Ross Danzig's (Clarks Green, Pa./Abington Heights/Blair Academy-NJ) senior year didn't start out as planned, but he's sure making up for lost time now.

He poured in 21 points on 9 of 11 shooting from the field and added eight assists and seven rebounds in leading The University of Scranton men's basketball team to its fourth straight win, a 96-64 drubbing of Moravian College in Landmark Conference action Wednesday evening at Johnston Hall.

The Royals, now 16-4 overall and 10-1 in the conference, also received 17 points and six rebounds from junior forward Brendan Boken (South Pasadena, Calif./Loyola), 13 points from freshman guardEthan Danzig (Clarks Green, Pa./Abington Heights), 11 from senior guard Justin Klingman (Clarks Summit, Pa./Abington Heights), and 10 from junior guard/forward Marcus Thomas (Clarksburg, Md./Clarksburg).

Senior guard Izel Dickerson (Bethlehem, Pa./Liberty) led the Greyhounds, now 4-16 overall and 2-9 in the Landmark, with 18 points and sophomore forward Brandon McGuire (Philadelphia, Pa./Father Judge) and junior guard/forward Jarrod Dilts (Bethlehem, Pa./Freedom) added 15 and 14 points, respectively.

Danzig, who has scored in double figures in eight straight and 12 of his last 13 games after a high-ankle sprain limited his mobility early in the season, scored 10 points in the first half as Scranton shot nearly 67 percent from the field to take a 45-32 halftime lead.  The scoring barrage continued in the second half as the Royals shot nearly 65 percent from the field to finish 65.5 percent for the game, including 12 of 18 (66.7 percent) from beyond the 3-point arc.

Scranton's bench also played a key role in tonight's win by out-scoring the Greyhound reserves 34-11. Freshman point-guard Kevin Doolan (Basking Ridge, NJ/Ridge), seeing action for the first time since suffering an ankle sprain at Ithaca College on January 13, led the Royal reserves with seven points, a rebound, an assist and a steal in 10 minutes of action and freshman forward Drew Schankweiler (Mechanicsburg, Pa./Mechanicsburg) had five points and four rebounds in 10 minutes.

Danzig's 21-point effort was his second-highest output of the season and moves him into eighth place on the Royals' all-time scoring list with 1676 points.  

With tonight's win, the Royals have qualified for the Landmark Conference playoffs for the eighth straight year.  They remain a game and a half behind Catholic University for the top spot and home court advantage throughout the tournament, which begins on Wednesday, February 25, with semifinal action at the site of the number one and two seeds.