The Delaware Valley men's basketball team couldn't put together a final run in a game that saw nine lead changes and 12 ties, as the Aggies fell to Neumann University 83-77.
The Aggies (0-2) got off to a quick 4-0 lead with a Godly Marc jumper and a Pernell Ghee layup in the first two minutes. Neumann (2-0) responded with a 10-2 run over a five minute span to take a 10-6 lead. After DelVal called a timeout, a Damian Washington jump shot and a Ghee layup knotted the score back up at 10-10.
The Aggies went cold from the field over the next 4:30, missing their next four shots while also turning the ball over four times. During that stretch, the Knights put together a 7-0 run to take a 17-10 lead.
Neumann held a 24-17 advantage with 5:14 left in the half after a Tyler Norwood three pointer. The Aggies responded with their biggest run of the half, a 10-2 burst over a 1:52 span, led by six points from Ghee to give DelVal a 27-26 lead. Neumann would take back lead the 30-27, but a Ryan Black three pointer would square the score at 30-30. The Knights would end up taking a 36-33 lead into halftime.
The beginning of the second half saw the score tied on three different occasions as teams traded baskets over the first three minutes. With the game tied 40-40, Jordan Tucker converted a layup to put the Aggies ahead for the first time since they led 27-26.
The largest lead for either team over the first six minutes of the second half was a 44-40 DelVal cushion. After being tied at 46, Neumann used an 8-2 run led by six Tyler Norwood points to grow their largest lead of the half 54-48. That lead did not last long, as the Aggies knocked down their next four shots over the next 1:18, as a Jordan Tucker jumper put DelVal back in front 57-56 to cap off a 9-2 burst.
After the Aggies led 63-62, a Tyler Norwood basket sparked a 6-0 run to put the Knights back in front 68-63. Ryan Black connected on a three pointer with 4:44 left to close the DelVal deficit to 70-69. Neumann extended their lead to 76-72 with 2:39 left and with DelVal needing a stop on the defensive end, Norwood knocked down a triple to extend the Knights' lead to seven. They would keep their lead at multiple possession the rest of the way to secure the victory.
Tyler Norwood led all scorers with 31 points on 10-18 shooting while adding five rebounds and three steals. Tony James contributed 15 points for the Knights and Jalen Vaughns and KJ Speller added 12 and 10 points respectively.
DelVal was led by Godly Marc's 21 points, eight assists and four steals. Pernell Ghee contributed 20 points for the Aggies and he and Marc he each shot 9-14 from the field. Matt Paulus added six assists off the bench, as DelVal assisted on 19 of 31 made baskets.
The Aggies were able turn Neumann over 18 times while committing only nine, but lost the rebound battle 37-27 and were outscored on second chance points 22-6. The Knights took advantage of their free throw opportunities as well, going 24-30 from the charity stripe, with DelVal only going 9-17.
DelVal returns to action again Lebanon Valley Friday, November 12th at the Lebanon Valley Tournament.
