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Reading rivals Albright and Alvernia will face off tonight with first place in the Commonwealth Conference at stake and a sellout crowd expected, in the biggest game of the season thus far for the Lion men.

Commonwealth Picture

If the season ended today, both Commonwealth semifinals would take place in Reading, with Alvernia (10-2) and Albright (9-3) several games clear of the field. An Alvernia victory would give the Crusaders a two-game lead and the tie-breaker over Albright, while a Lion win ties things up with five games to go.

Lycoming, Arcadia and Messiah are all 7-5 in the league, with the other five teams deadlocked at 4-8, meaning either Albright or Alvernia could move to the cusp of clinching a playoff spot (five teams qualify) with a victory tonight.

Albright College Lions (16-3, 9-3 Commonwealth)

The Lions have won four straight, beating the other three 2011-12 Commonwealth playoff teams in the process. Last weekend, Albright beat defending champion Messiah 61-59 behind 22 points, nine rebounds, five assists and five steals from senior Dave Singleton. Singleton has been on fire recently, winning two straight Commonwealth Player of the Week awards while adding one ECAC South Player of the Week nod and a D3hoops.com National Team of the Week mention as well.

Singleton is 14th in the nation in assists (5.8 apg) and needs seven more steals to break the Albright single-season record. Pedro Perez is second on the team in scoring (13.2 ppg), while point guard Sam Marrella is among the nation's leaders in assist-to-turnover ratio (2.95).

The focus will be on Albright's post players as the Crusaders had success inside in their first meeting with the Lions. Centers Zach Benjamin (9.7 ppg, 4.7 rpg) and Calvert Gantz (63.3% shooting percentage) will be counted on at both ends of the floor, and the Lions could also go small with athletic forward Kyle Jordan (11.1 ppg, 6.3 rpg, 23 blocks).

Albright is high on the list of teams receiving votes in the national polls, and could have a shot at making next week's top-25 with a pair of victories against local rivals Alvernia and Lebanon Valley over the next four days.

Alvernia University Crusaders (15-3, 10-2 Commonwealth)

The red-hot Crusaders have won 12 of their last 13 games, with the only loss coming by two points against NCAA second round qualifier NYU.

Sophomore forward Terrance Bridgers has been named Commonwealth Player of the Week twice this season, and is averaging 13.7 points and 6.5 rebounds per contest. Junior forward Brian Parker (12.7 ppg, 9.9 rpg) is averaging just short of a double-double, with Kahlil Bennett (15.4 ppg) and Lamont Clark (11.2 ppg) also scoring in double-figures for a squad that totals 72.8 points per contest.

Video/Audio Streaming

Albright will have a free online radio feed of tonight's men's game, with play-by-play from Bob McCool. Alvernia will also be providing their video feed free for this highly-anticipated showdown.

MAC 100 All-Century Teams

Voting is now open for the MAC 100 All-Century winter teams, as the conference celebrates its centennial this year. Squads are being chosen for each era in conference history and an impressive list of Lion legends have been nominated. Albright men's basketball nominees include the school's all-time leading scorer Tom Pearsall, New York Knicks draft pick Bill Carey, and recent Commonwealth Players of the Year Albert Medoro and Zac Schaeffer. Vote online now at http://www.mascac.org/sports/2012/5/29/MAC100CenturyTeamsVotingPortal.aspx?id=4799