READING, Pa. - The Widener men's basketball team put together its highest scoring output of the season en route to knocking off third-seeded Alvernia, 98-80, in the MAC Commonwealth quarterfinals on Wednesday night at John McCloskey Court.
The victory helped the Pride even their record at 13-13 record and avenge their two previous defeats to the Golden Wolves, who had earned an 84-67 win on Jan. 19 at Alvernia and an 88-83 win on Feb. 15 at Widener. More importantly, it earned them a conference semifinal berth for the fourth time in six seasons.
HOW IT HAPPENED AGAINST ALVERNIA
- Trailing, 42-38, at halftime, the Pride dominated the Golden Wolves in the second half, outscoring the home team, 60-38. The Pride's 60-point outburst, keyed by runs of 19-5 and 15-3 in the first 12:30 of the second half, marked the first time they scored 60 or more points in a half this season and the second time they scored 90 or more in a game this year.
- The Pride shot a blistering 60 percent for the game on 36-for-60 shooting and the 36 field goals made were the most in a game this season. In the second half, the Blue and Gold shot 62.5 percent on 20-for-32 shooting.
- Matt Daulerio led the charge for the Pride, pouring in a game-high 23 points. The Chester Springs, Pa. native scored 14 of his 23 points in the second half.
- Along with Daulerio, the Pride saw Steven Matlack, Jared Peters, Kenny Lewis, AJ Sawyers, and Pat Holden each score in double figures. Matlack added 18 points, Peters put in 16, Lewis had 15, Sawyers scored 12, and Holden had 10, respectively.
- Lewis and Peters also did the majority of their scoring in the second half. Lewis put in 13 of his 15 in the half, while Peters had 12 of his 16 in the frame.
- Lewis also led the Pride with 13 rebounds to record his 10th career double-double. This season, the Baltimore, Md. Native has five double-doubles for the Pride.
- With his 16 points, Peters moved into 18th-place on the Widener men's basketball all-time scoring list with 1,161 career points. The Reading, Pa. native is 28 points away from moving into a tie for 17th with Casey Stitzel, who had 1,189 points from 2001-05.
UP NEXT
The Pride will play second-seeded Hood in the MAC Commonwealth semifinals on Friday night at Hood College. A win over the Blazers will put the Pride in the conference championship game for the first time since 2019. Tip-off is set for 6 p.m.
