CHESTER, Pa. – Connor Laverty eclipsed the 20-point mark for the first time in his collegiate career, but the Widener University men's basketball team fell to the Middlebury Panthers 95-75 in a non-conference matchup on Tuesday evening.
 
BY THE NUMBERS

• Laverty topped the Pride scoring list for the fourth straight game, dropping 21 on 8-for-14 shooting, including a pair of threes. The total surpassed his previous career-best of 16, achieved on two occasions, most recently on November 28 against Messiah.
• Elijah Boyd also reached double figures with 12. Jared Peters posted seven, all in the first half.
• Luke Patel tied a career-high, netting five.
• Ryan McMahon led WU with five rebounds and three assists.

 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• Widener got off to a hot start, jumping out to a 7-2 lead before the Panthers battled back to take an 8-7 edge just less than four minutes into the contest.
• The Pride responded on the strength of a 16-7 run, taking its largest lead of the half at 25-17 on a layup by Jared Peters midway through the frame. During the spurt that spanned 7:33, the Blue and Gold held Middlebury to 2-for-14 shooting and forced four turnovers while connecting on 50 percent of its own shots.
• Fighting to stay on top, Widener pushed back to a 30-25 advantage on a trey by Boyd late in the frame. From there, Middlebury closed the final 4:08 of the half on an 11-0 run, taking a 36-30 lead at intermission.
• The teams traded baskets for the opening four minutes of the second stanza as Widener pulled to 40-35 on an old-fashioned three-point play from Jalen Howard before the Panthers extended to 50-37 advantage in a matter of three minutes.
• A three-pointer by Laverty drew the Blue and Gold back to 54-44 with 13:39 to play. From that point, Middlebury pulled away to seal the victory.

 
UP NEXT
The Pride returns to action on Saturday, January 12, returning to conference action at Stevenson. Tipoff from Owings Mills, Md. is scheduled for 3:00 p.m.