GRANTHAM, Pa. – Messiah men's basketball defeated Eastern Mennonite University 74-70 in the TownPlace Suites Tip-Off Championship game this afternoon. Colin Sareyka led the team with 21 points shooting 7-17 (41%) from the field and was namad the most valuable player of the tournament. Matt Glogowski came off the bench and scored 13 points and collected eight rebounds, while Neil Murren added 10 points in the win and was also named to the all-tournament team.
 
The Falcons shot 46% (26-56) from the field and again lit it up behind the arc going 9-19 (47%) from three-point range.
 
Quick From the Start
Messiah started the game off very strong with a 13-0 run scoring the first six baskets of the game and forced Easter Mennonite to take a timeout. A three-pointer by Matt Hess at the 15:13 mark gave the Falcons a 16-2 advantage as the Royals struggled to get going. They did, however, respond with a couple jump shots and a three by Travis Clower to cut the lead 16-13.
 
With Messiah ahead 26-23, a basket by Isaiah Harris-Winn pulled EMU within one, but then Kyle Krout drew a foul and sank two free throws to extend the lead 28-25. The Falcons finished the first half on a 10-5 scoring run and had a 38-33 lead at halftime.
 
Steady Second Half
The Falcons came out steady and composed in the second half and again the shooting from the three-point line was impressive. Nate Eberle knocked one down at the 18:02 mark to put the Falcons up by five 43-35. Three minutes later a layup by Josh Darville kept Messiah in the lead 48-40 and then they increased their advantage to double digits on a layup by Willie Hope. Every time EMU would make a little run Messiah always had a an answer whether it was a defensive stop or a bucket on the offensive end.
 
The Royals kept pressing though and down by five 57-52, a jumper by Travis Clower brought them within three 57-54, but then Colin Sareyka drained another three to put the Falcons up 60-54. Later in the game Messiah saw a 10 point lead disappear as EMU went on a 8-0 run to cut the lead down 69-67 and forced Messiah to take a timeout. A layup by Darville after the timeout put the Falcons back up by four 71-67.
 
Trailing 71-68, EMU was forced to foul and Sareyka drained two from behind the charity stripe with less than 30 seconds in the game to give Messiah a nice five-point cushion but two free throws by EMU at the other end made it a one possession ball game. After the Falcons safely in-bounded the ball Neil Murren was fouled and knocked down one free throw which made it a two-possession ball game and Messiah went on to win the game.
 
The Falcons were edged in rebounds 39-35 and shot just 50% (13-26) from the free throw line, but as aforementioned, the sharp shooting from outside was a determining factor in today's game.
 
Next Up  
Messiah improves to 2-1 on the year and will play on the road Tuesday night at Cairn University with the game to begin at 7:00 p.m