Reading, PA — Blame it on the blizzard.
Traveling to Alvernia University for a rare Thursday night make-up contest, Messiah witnessed a 30-21 halftime lead dissipate late, dropping an eventual 63-60 decision to the host Crusaders — all with just one regular-season game remaining.
The defeat now places new importance on Saturday's season finale at Albright College, as Messiah (20-4, 10-3) all but needs a road victory to assure itself a home game in the Commonwealth Conference Tournament next week.
Thursday night, however, all Falcons' head coach Mike Miller could think about was his team's second half. Messiah allowed 42 Alvernia points in the stanza, the most scored by an opponent in any half this season.
“It was very disappointing to give up that many points in the second half,” Miller said. “Especially after a solid first half in terms of defensive intelligence. Once Alvernia got it going, they were tough to stop.”
It didn't appear that Alvernia (15-8, 9-4) would cause much of a threat in the game's opening 20 minutes, as Miller's group opened and finished the first period in strong fashion. A 17-4 Falcons' run turned an 8-7 Alvernia lead into a 24-12 Messiah advantage with 11:06 to go, while a layup from junior Michele Schleich provided the final halftime difference — a 30-21 Falcons' lead.
Messiah — ranked 17th in this week's USA Today/ESPN Top 25 Coaches Poll and 16th in the latest D3hoops.com ballot — limited the hosts to just 27.3 percent shooting in the first half, forcing 11 Crusader turnovers as well.
Sadly for Miller and company, the second half was a different story entirely.
Alvernia canned a layup and a three-ball right out of the gates, pulling within a 30-27 difference just a minute and a half into play. The Falcons would extend back to a seven-point lead, but another Crusader run — this one an 8-0 surge — turned a 36-29 Messiah lead into a 37-36 advantage for the hosts with 12:09 to go.
Things would stay tight from there.
A jumperfrom freshman Dori Gyori put Messiah back on top by five (48-43) with 6:39 to play, but three straight buckets from Alvernia's Kelli McIntyre — the last one a triple — gave Alvernia a 50-48 lead with 5:25 remaining.
A pair of free throws from freshman Nicky Hess tied the game at 53-53 with 4:19 to go, but a jumper from the Crusaders' Alex Velasquez put the hosts back on top on the ensuing possession.
Hess buried a three-pointer on Messiahs' next trip, however, putting the Falcons ahead by a 56-55 count with 2:59 to go.
It would be Messiah's last lead.
A pair of Velazquez free throws put Alvernia back on top with 2:17 to play and, following a missed jumper from senior Julie Henninger, the Crusaders' McIntyre knocked down a jumper with 1:42 on the clock — making it a 59-56 ballgame.
An offensive rebound and putback from Gyori trimmed it to a one-point deficit with 34 seconds left, but Alvernia was clutch at the free throw line after Messiah was forced to foul: The Crusaders buried all four of their free throw attempts split around another Gyori layup, giving the ball back to Messiah with 11 seconds to play.
Miller drew up a brilliant set that got Hess an open look at the top of the key, but her shot fell off the rim moments before the clock expired.
Gyori finished with a career-high 18 points to go with six rebounds, while Henninger scored 16 to go with five boards and four assists. Hess finished with 11 points.
Alvernia connected on 14 of 27 second-half shots from the floor (51.9 percent), and made a killing at the free throw line, knocking in 19 of 26 attempts — the second best numbers for a Messiah opponent on the season. The best? A 23 for 33 performance from, yes, Alvernia in the teams' first meeting, a 76-65 Messiah win Jan. 16.
“They average 26 free throws a game, and that's what they got on us,” Miller said. “We average 20 (actually 19.5 per game entering Thursday's contest) and only get to the line 11 times. We've got to get there more than that.”
Messiah and Alvernia were scheduled to play Thursday's contest back on Feb. 6, but the first of two mid-Atlantic blizzards forced a postponement. With Thursday's loss, Messiah now heads to Albright Saturday essentially playing for a home game in the upcoming Commonwealth Conference Semi-Finals: A Falcons' win would guarantee the squad the second seed, while a loss would likely put Messiah at either the third or fourth slot.
It's a mathematical possibility that Messiah could retain a second-place finish with a loss, but the team would need help from other teams around the league.
“We're looking at (Saturday) as a must-win for us,” Miller said. “We want to play at home next week. It's obviously a big one for us, but that's okay. This team needs these 'big game' experiences. I'm excited to see how we respond.”
Messiah and Albright are scheduled to tip-off at 2 p.m. Saturday in the George C. Bollman Center.
