SCRANTON, Pa. – Facing its first loss in the five-year history of the Cross-County Challenge, The University of Scranton men's basketball team put forth one of the best defensive efforts in recent memory on Sunday afternoon.
The Royals allowed just three points over the final 10:43 to turn a six-point deficit into a 60-50 victory against Wilkes on Saturday afternoon at Marywood University. The victory improves Scranton to 10-0 in the five-year history of the event, which also features local schools Wilkes, King's and Marywood. The Royals have shared or won the title outright all five years.
Sophomore guard Kevin Doolan (Basking Ridge, N.J./Ridge) was named MVP after finishing with 19 points while making five of seven from 3-point range. He had 24 points in the Royals' 72-60 win over King's a day earlier.
Junior forward Brendan Boken (South Pasadena, Calif./Loyola) also earned all-tournament honors after scoring 17 points in the win on Sunday.
Scranton (5-1) held a narrow lead at halftime for the second straight day, taking a 30-27 edge into the locker room after Doolan and fellow sophomore guard Ethan Danzig (Clarks Green, Pa./Abington Heights) had nine points each, all on 3-pointers.
After Boken opened the second half with a 3-pointer to double the Royals' lead, Wilkes (3-3) went on a 15-5 run to take a 42-38 lead five minutes into the half. Four minutes later, the Colonels pushed the lead to six at 47-41 with 10:43 to play, but Royals head coach Carl Danzig used a timeout and his team responded with dominant defense the rest of the way.
The Royals held Wilkes to 1-for-16 from the field over the rest of the game, which sparked a game-ending 19-3 run. Doolan and Boken combined for the first 10 points of the run, and junior forward John Vitkus (Mahopac, N.Y./Mahopac) had four straight points at one point.
Doolan added six rebounds, four assists and two steals. He finished the event averaging 21.5 points, 3.5 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 2.5 steals.
Danzig finished the afternoon with 11 points, five rebounds, two steals, two blocks and one assist. Vitkus contributed 10 points, nine rebounds, an assist and a block.
Scranton finished the afternoon shooting 44.2 percent (19-for-43) from the field, including 10-for-21 (47.6 percent) from 3-point range. The Royals made 12 of 21 from the free throw line. They also held Wilkes to just 33.3 percent (19-for-57) from the field, including just 10-for-34 (29.4 percent) from beyond the arc.
The Royals will now prepare for the start of Landmark Conference play when they travel to Huntingdon, Pa. on Saturday, Dec. 5, to take on Juniata at 2 p.m.
--ROYALS--