HOBOKEN, N.J. – Delaware Valley men's basketball was tied with Stevens IT at halftime, but the Ducks pulled away in the second half to earn a 77-65 victory on Saturday afternoon.
Brian Mordi opened the scoring for DelVal with a three-pointer, splitting a pair of layups by Chhabra. Mordi stayed hot early, adding another triple and a three-point play just over three minutes in. Stevens took a 12-9 lead at the free-throw line before Jeremiah Lee grabbed an offensive rebound and found Zach Smith for a layup.
After a brief scoreless stretch, Lee again went to work on the glass, converting a putback to retake the lead. The advantage changed hands several times before Mike Herrin sparked a 5-0 Aggies run to put DelVal ahead 29-22 with 4:23 remaining in the half. Chhabra and Leming answered to bring Stevens within two, and after a Herrin layup, Maddison and Scholl hit back-to-back baskets to tie the game at 31 heading into halftime.
Mordi opened the second half with a layup, but Scholl responded with an 8-0 run to give the Ducks momentum. Brendon Bradford stopped the run with a three-pointer, but Leming and Scholl continued to build the lead, pushing it to 47-36.
Bradford converted two free throws after a steal, and Jake McGinty followed with a basket off an offensive rebound, but Stevens maintained control. Loscalzo drained a three with 9:03 remaining to extend the Ducks' lead to 12, their largest of the night.
Out of a media timeout, Bradford knocked down two more free throws, and Antonio Redding connected from beyond the arc to spark a brief Aggies run. Redding later added a floater to cap a 6-0 stretch, trimming the deficit, but Stevens answered with timely scoring.
Late layups from Lee, assisted by Redding, and strong defense from Mordi kept DelVal within striking distance, but a three-pointer by Maddison with just over a minute remaining sealed the win for the Ducks.
Bradford led the Aggies with 15 points, going a perfect 9-for-9 from the free-throw line.
With the loss, DelVal falls to 8-14 overall and 2-9 in MAC Freedom play. The Aggies wrap up their road schedule on Saturday, Feb. 14 at King's College.
