HAVERFORD, Pa. – The Delaware Valley men's basketball team opened its season on the road against Haverford College, battling throughout the contest before falling just short in a 72-71 finish. Despite a late-game rally, the Aggies were unable to complete the comeback as Haverford held on for the victory.
Haverford opened the game with a 5-0 lead, but the Aggies quickly responded with three-pointers from
Brendon Bradford and
Zach Smith, along with baskets from
Kamal Johnson and
Kionne Lang, to stay within reach. Haverford built a seven-point advantage midway through the half, but Delaware Valley continued to chip away behind Johnson's scoring and contributions from
Jeremiah Lee and
Brian Mordi. Mordi added an impressive dunk off an assist from
Kobe Bazemore, while Lee connected from beyond the arc to bring the Aggies within one.
Johnson continued to provide an offensive spark, scoring on a driving layup before knocking down a step-back three-pointer to give DelVal a 32-26 lead. Haverford answered with a late run, highlighted by a dunk from Adam Strong-Jacobson and a three-pointer from Tyler Nolan, to even the score at 34-34 heading into halftime.
The Aggies carried their momentum into the second half, as Mordi scored six points and Lee added key baskets to help DelVal take a 42-36 lead. Haverford responded with a run of its own to reclaim the lead and build a 50-45 advantage, taking advantage of the Aggies' struggles at the free-throw line, where DelVal went just 6-for-14 (37.5%).
DelVal began to mount a comeback, with Bradford and
Omari Banks each contributing a layup. Johnson provided another offensive spark, knocking down three three-pointers, to bring the Aggies within three points, 72-69, with just over a minute remaining. Lang followed with a dunk off a Johnson assist cutting the deficit to just one, 72-71, with 47 seconds left. However, the Aggies were unable to find another basket in the closing seconds as Haverford held on for the win.
DelVal looks to bounce back tomorrow night when it travels to take on Swarthmore at 7 p.m.
