MIDDLETOWN, Pa. - Penn State Harrisburg's men's basketball team was narrowly edged by non-conference opponent Alvernia 69-68 at the Capital Union Building on Sunday night, Dec. 1.
 
Chris Henderson netted a team-high 13 points, while Isaiah Milien and Nate Townsend were the only other Penn State Harrisburg players to reach double figures with 11 and 10 points, respectively.
 
With the Lions (2-5) leading 34-29 at halftime, Alvernia (4-1) scored five straight points out of the break to tie things up at 34-34 with 17:48 left to play. The teams traded the lead 10 times over the next 10 minutes until the contest was stalemated again at 55-55 with 7:05 remaining.
 
From there, the visitors put together an 8-2 run over the ensuing five minutes to pull ahead 63-57 with 2:14 left to play. Milien gave the Lions a spark with a rare 4-point play, converting a corner triple while being fouled before sinking the free throw to cut the deficit to 63-61 with 1:46 remaining.
 
Alvernia answered with a tough layup in traffic the next time down the floor but Larry Onabanwo made a pair of foul shots with 1:06 left to keep the deficit to one possession. The Golden Wolves hit four more free throws with less than a minute to play but a 3-point heave from Milien made it 69-68 with four ticks left. After two missed free throws from AU with 1.1 seconds remaining, the Lions were unable to get off a full-court prayer as time expired.
 
NOTABLES
- Henderson tallied 13 points and five rebounds, while Milien pitched in 11 points of his own.
- Townsend recorded 10 points and Hunter led the Lions with eight boards to go along with seven points.
- The Golden Wolves shot 75 percent from the charity stripe and went to the line 36 times compared to the Lions' 17 attempts.
- Alvernia's Robert Cottrell and Elijah Hamilton had 18 points each on the night.
 
WHO'S NEXT?
The Lions travel to Washington, D.C. on Wednesday, Dec. 4 for a United East Conference matchup with Gallaudet.
 
STAY CONNECTED
Fans can keep up with Penn State Harrisburg Athletics all season long on Instagram, Facebook, X, and Youtube using the handle @pshbgathletics.