READING, Pa. – The Albright men's basketball team dropped a hard-fought 76-71 matchup against local MAC Commonwealth rival Alvernia in the Bollman Center on Saturday.
 
With the loss, the Lions fall to 5-7 in conference and 9-11 overall. Meanwhile, the Golden Wolves improve to 8-4 in conference and 14-5 overall.
 
Senior Sidney Brown led the Lions with 17 points behind 7-for-12 shooting from the floor and 3-for-6 from beyond the arc and added five rebounds. Junior Robert Mangum followed with 14 points off the bench on 6-for-10 shooting from the field and six rebounds. Sophomore Dylan McGinley added 11 points on a near-perfect 4-for-5 shooting from the floor and four rebounds. Senior Troy Smoot had a team-high five assists, five points, one block, and one steal.
 
Alvernia opened up the game with a 10-5 run to take an early lead. The Lions didn't hang their heads, however, as McGinley jump started a 12-2 run capped off with three-consecutive baskets from Brown to take a 17-12 lead at the 11:41-mark. An and-one for Alvernia cut their deficit to two, but Mangum got the Lions back on track sparking a 12-5 run that gave Albright a nine-point lead at the 5:45-mark. The Golden Wolves responded with a big 15-2 run that allowed them to take a 37-33 lead with less than a minute to go in the first half. Sophomore Chris Kouemi knocked down a pair of free throws and Mangum closed out the half with a last second three-pointer to give Albright a 38-37 lead entering the break.
 
McGinley notched the first bucket of the second half and free throw for the Lions to extend their lead to four. Ten unanswered points for Alvernia, however, allowed them to take back the lead with a 47-41 advantage at the 16:46-mark. An 8-2 run for Albright fueled with back-to-back three pointers from Brown tied the game up at 49 at the 14:02-mark. The two teams traded baskets but Alvernia continued to remain in front. Albright finally broke through with ten unanswered points to earn a 67-61 lead with 5:20 remaining. A 7-1 run for Alvernia, all earned on the charity stripe, tied the game up at 68. Brown put Albright back in front with a three-pointer with 3:00 remaining, but Alvernia pulled ahead one last time as they closed out the game with eight-straight points to claim a 76-71 victory.
 
Albright shot 27-for-59 (45.8%) from the field, 6-for-25 (24.0%) from beyond the arc, and 11-for-16 (68.8%) from the charity stripe. The Lions tallied 32 points in the paint, converted 17 points off turnovers, and saw 31 points off their bench. Meanwhile, five Golden wolves reached double figures as they shot 25-for-58 (43.1%) from the floor, 8-for-19 (42.1%) from three-point range, and 18-for-24 (75.0%) from the free-throw line as a team. Alvernia tallied 27 points off turnovers and 16 points in transition. The Lions won the battle on the glass 37-32.
 
The Lions will return to action on Wednesday at 8 p.m. as they travel to Eastern to continue MAC Commonwealth action.