CHESTER, Pa. – Connor Laverty scored 15 points for the fourth straight game, but the Widener University men's basketball team fell to the Lebanon Valley Dutchmen 77-71 on Saturday afternoon.
 
BY THE NUMBERS

• Laverty also posted six rebounds, five assists, four steals, and three blocks in the contest.
• A.J. Sawyers recorded 13 points. Elijah Boyd also reached double figures with 11.
• Boyd and Jared Peters led the Pride, pulling in seven rebounds each.

 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• After a slow start for both teams, Widener took the early lead, using a 22-10 run, taking a 23-14 edge midway through the half. The Blue and Gold was nearly unstoppable from the floor, connecting on 9-of-10 field goals during the span with seven different players finding the bottom of the net.
• Lebanon Valley responded, using a 21-4 spurt of its own, to go up 35-28 with 1:23 left in the opening frame. A scramble to the finish ensued, as the Pride pulled to 35-34 at halftime.
• A quick 9-2 start to the second half for the Dutchmen created a lead from which Widener was unable to fully battle back. WU chopped the edge to four on a handful of occasions, the last at 68-64 on a three-pointer by Laverty. The Pride played excellent defense on the following defensive set, but an off-balance jumper with the shot clock winding down from the Dutchmen banked in with just less than two minutes remaining, all but sealing the final.

 
UP NEXT
The Pride remains home for a non-conference contest against No. 24 Middlebury on Tuesday, January 8. Tipoff from the Schwartz Center is scheduled for 7:00 p.m.