St. Davids, Pa. – The Messiah men's basketball team picked up its second-consecutive win, topping Eastern University on the road, 68-62, Friday night. Senior forward Matt Glogowski had a stellar performance, leading all scorers with a season-high 23 points. Senior forward Will Young IV also made lasting offensive contributions, dropping 19 points, while freshman guard Bryce Coletti also tallied double figures scoring (11).

Glogowski Shines
The Eagles jumped out to a hot start early, extending a 7-2 lead just 1:46 into the game. Glogowski connected on the first of his four first half three-pointers, a triple at the 17:43 mark that cut Messiah's deficit to 7-5. Continuing to score, Glogowski registered the Falcons' first 10 points of the contest from 4-of-7 shooting from the floor. Messiah trailed the hosts by a point, 11-10, after Glogowski's second three-pointer of the half with 15:38 remaining.

Junior guard Tyler Penley scored five points in the opening 8:46 of the game, draining a three-pointer at the 11:14 mark, giving the Falcons' their first lead of the night, a 20-17 edge. Young, tallying the first of his 19 points on the night, hit from beyond the arc with 7:11 remaining, the start of a Messiah 9-5 scoring run that was capped off by Young's second three-point field goal with just over four minutes remaining.

Messiah led, 33-30, with 4:12 left in the first half. In those final four minutes, each side made only one field goal. A layup from Coletti with 2:21 was the Falcons' final bucket of the half, leading at halftime, 35-32.

Glogowski paced the Falcons in scoring in the first half, scoring a game-leading 18 points heading into halftime. The senior forward connected on half of his shots from beyond the arc (4-8) during the opening period. Overall, the Falcons shot an impressive 46.7% (7-15) from three-point range throughout the first half.

Falcons In Control
Messiah, looking to top the Eagles in consecutive nights, began the second half of play with a 7-2 scoring run. During the run, the Falcons connected on all three of their field goal attempts, highlighted by Young's third three-pointer of the game at the 18:13 mark, carving a 42-34 advantage. Glogowski and Young combined to score the Falcons' first 11 points of the half, as freshman guard Arkese Claiborne scored his first points of the game from a layup with 14:35 left on the clock.

The Eagles enjoyed a 6-0 scoring run that cut their deficit to just three points, 51-48, with just under ten minutes (9:50) remaining. The Falcons rattled off the game's next five points, including another triple from Young. The senior forward's fourth three-point basket came with just 6:59 remaining, increasing Messiah's lead to 56-48.

The Falcons held off Eastern in the final minutes of the game. Despite being outscored, 14-12, in the final 6:46 of the contest, the Falcons made half of their shots from the field (4-8). Messiah registered four different scorers during that span, highlighted by a three-pointer from junior guard Caleb Light at the 5:55 mark.
Messiah held on, 68-62, earning victories in consecutive nights opposite Eastern to improve to 4-6 on the season. The Falcons have won three out of their past four matchups.

Notable Falcons
Young was hot from beyond the arc, draining all four of his three-point attempts to supplement his season-high scoring effort (19). In addition to scoring a game-high 23 points, Glogowski reeled in a team-high 12 rebounds to solidify his third double-double of the season. The Falcons had eight different scorers, including freshman guards Michael Healy (3), Claiborne (2), and freshman forward Dylan Cuperus (2).

What's Up Next
The Falcons will be back in action next week for a MAC Conference consolation matchup. The details of the 2021 season finale are expected to be released on Monday, Mar. 15.