PHOENIXVILLE, PA – The University of Valley Forge Men's Basketball Team played against the Cairn University Highlanders on Tuesday, February 10^th.  The Patriots, trailing much of the second half, were able to find a way to force overtime.  They built a quick lead in OT and held on to beat the Highlanders, 77-72.
 
Although the Highlanders (2-18) haven't had a lot of success on the court this year, in this game they looked like a team on a mission.  They dominated the Patriots for long stretches of the game, building a lead as large as 14.  Patriots' Head Coach Jon Mack spoke about Cairn's performance after the game, "They outworked us and outplayed us for much of the game.  Every time we got close, they responded by hitting big shots.  We just found a way to win."
 
In the first half, the Highlanders built an early 12-4 lead after a 3-pointer from JD Zamroz.  The Patriots responded by going on a 12-0 scoring run.  Kevin Mack and Jonathan Kinyanjui hit back-to-back 3-pointers to kick-start the scoring spurt.  Valley Forge continued to hold a slim margin for much of the first half.  However, trailing 25-28 with 3:26 to play, Highlanders' Reuben Lacy knocked down a 3-pointer to knot it up.  The Patriots responded with a layup from Thorne McIntosh, but the Highlanders countered with 3-pointers from Kyle Bonner and Lacy to take a 34-30 lead into the locker room.
 
Reuben Lacy had an outstanding game for Cairn.  The Patriots had a difficult time stopping him.  He scored 20 points, including 3-5 from 3-point range, and had 17 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 blocks, and 2 steals.  13 of his 20 points came in the first half.
 
The Highlanders came out in the second half and took it to the Patriots.  Lacy, and teammate Darnell Clowney, helped lead their team on a 10-0 scoring run.  Cairn led 44-30 with 16:31 remaining.  Clowney finished the game 18 points and 7 rebounds.  However, the Patriots did not panic and began to chip away at the lead.  Over the next 4 minutes they brought it back to a four-point margin (46-42).  The run was capped off by a 3-point play from Tony Hazzard.  The Highlanders responded with another Lacy 3-pointer.  Valley Forge kept pulling the game back to a three or four-point margin, but Cairn responded almost every time with a basket on their end.  Another 3-pointer from JD Zamroz gave the Highlanders a 60-55 lead with 5:46 to play.  The Patriots kept chipping away, and eventually found themselves trailing by three with 19 seconds remaining.  With the seconds ticking away, Kevin Mack found some space in the corner and launched a 3-pointer...  It was good!  The Highlanders raced down the court and got off an attempt at the buzzer, but it came up short.  Overtime!
 
The Patriots kept the momentum going into overtime and built a 70-66 lead after a layup from Hazzard.  A layup from Highlanders' Omar Askia brought it back to a two-point margin with 2:47 to play.  Askia finished with 14 points, 9 rebounds, and 5 assists.  With just over a minute remaining and the shot clock running down, Jean LeBlanc hit a turn around jumper to push the lead back to four.  Again the Highlanders responded with a layup from Askia, keeping it a one-possession game.  Kevin Mack, just coming off his big shot to force overtime, hit another jumper to make it 74-70 with 44 seconds remaining.  The Highlanders didn't have an answer this time and the Patriots held on for the victory, 77-72.
 
Mack led the Patriots with a double-double.  He had 24 points, 10 rebounds, and 5 steals.  Brandon Rembert also had a solid game, scoring 12 points and dishing out 7 assists.  Kinyanjui finished with 9 points.  Jerome Staley and Tony Hazzard each had 4 assists.
 
The Patriots, now 12-8 on the season, will have a quick turnaround as they travel to Tennessee to play three games in three days.  Their first match up will be against Hiwassee College on Thursday at 8PM.
 
Go Patriots!