Michael Pastore vs Moravian 120217
Dan Gittis
69
Winner Moravian MOR 5-1, 1-0 LMK
68
Elizabethtown ETOWN 1-4, 0-1 LMK
Winner
Moravian MOR
5-1, 1-0 LMK
69
Final
68
Elizabethtown ETOWN
1-4, 0-1 LMK
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
Moravian MOR 29 40 69
Elizabethtown ETOWN 40 28 68

Game Recap: Men's Basketball |

Moravian steals Landmark opener from Blue Jays

ELIZABETHTOWN, Pa. -- Elizabethtown found out how quickly you can go from one end of the spectrum to the other.

Three days ago the Blue Jays trailed more than 30 minutes before stunning Haverford with a 75-72 come-from-behind victory. Saturday, E-town led for almost 27 minutes against Moravian on its home floor at Thompson Gymnasium, but the Greyhounds used an 18-3 second-half run to get back into the game and won it, 69-68, on Mike Martino's 4-point play from the left corner with 8.1 seconds left.

It was a crushing loss for the Blue Jays (1-4, 0-1 Landmark) who frustrated the defending Landmark runner-up Greyhounds for much of the afternoon and were attempting to shake up the conference's preseason prognostications on the opening day of league play.

Bryce Greene scored 18 points for the second straight game, Michael Pastore added 16 and Connor Moffatt registered his fourth double-double in five games with 15 rebounds and 14 points to lead Elizabethtown.

The Blue Jays went to the half up 40-29 after Brandon Berry hit a pull up just inside the free throw stripe and extended their lead to 16, 52-36, with 13:59 to go on five straight points from Moffatt.

Moravian got big buckets from some unlikely sources to climb back into contention. Reserve guard Matt O'Connor scored five points and Nicholas Casazza made his only two baskets of the afternoon with 3-pointers on consecutive possessions.

Martino capped the Hounds (5-1, 1-0) 18-3 run with a trey that gave the visitors a 58-55 lead with 8:06 remaining --their first lead since 12:39 of the first half.

E-town didn't crumble, instead responding with six Pastore points and a 9-0 run to lead 64-58 as the clock neared five minutes.

The Blue Jays, up 68-65, had a chance to make it a two-possession game with 33 seconds left, but misfired on a pair of free throws. With time running thin, Casazza found Martino deep in the left corner and the sophomore guard buried the game-tying three with Moffatt flying at him. Unfortunately for the Blue and Gray, Moffatt was whistled for a foul on the play and Martino converted at the line for a one-point Moravian advantage.

Pastore's last second attempt from 25 feet was long and the Landmark's preseason No. 2 escaped.

Elizabethtown shot 47.1 (24 of 51) for the game, but were just 1 of 11 from long distance. Moravian didn't help its own cause, going 9 of 20 from the free throw line and missing 11 of its first 16 3-pointers before rallying to make five of its final eight.

Jimmy Murray had a team-high 17 points for the Greyhounds before fouling out with 3:18 to go and his team down a point. Mike Martino provided 12 points and Oneil Holder, who came in averaging better than 17 points per game, was held to 11 with nine rebounds.

Moffatt was fantastic again for the Jays, going 6 of 7 from the floor and ripping down 13 of his 15 rebounds at the defensive end. The Mountville native also had a pair of blocks and assists.

Ethan DuBois had seven points and led the hosts with four assists and three steals. Josh Christ collected six points and five boards.

The Blue Jays will have a quick turnaround when they face Cairn in Langhorne Monday night at 8, before returning to Thompson for three straight home games starting next Sunday at noon against Washington College.
 
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