CIRCLEVILLE, OH – The University of Valley Forge Men's Basketball Team concluded their season on Friday, March 13^th at the NCCAA National Championship Tournament.
 
Prior to the tournament, Senior Kevin Mack was honored as a Second Team NCCAA All-American for his contributions during the season.  He averaged 15.8 points, 4.9 rebounds, and 3.6 assists per game. 
 
On Thursday, the Patriots took on familiar opponent Grace Bible College.  The Tigers used an early 14-2 scoring run to build a 21-7 lead after just 8 minutes of play.  The Patriots were not able to chip into the lead, as the Tigers inside play was very strong.  They out-rebounded the Patriots in the first half, 22-9 and shot 54% from the field.  The score at halftime was 27-45.
 
The closest Valley Forge got in the second half was a 16-point margin.  The play of Tigers' Bernard Smith was a major factor.  He scored 26 points on 11-12 shooting and grabbed a game-high 10 rebounds.  The Tigers went on to win 82-62, which sent the Patriots to the consolations.
 
On Friday, Valley Forge went up against Manhattan Christian College.  Manhattan built a 12-point lead in the second half, and found a way to fight off a Patriots' rally to win, 85-81.
 
In the first half, back-to-back 3-pointers from Jonathan Kinyanjui gave the Patriots a 37-25 lead with 4:20 to play.  However, Manhattan stormed back and went on a 12-1 scoring run to close out the half down by just one, 37-38.
 
The momentum continued into the second half as Manhattan built a 61-49 lead with 11:57 to play.  The Patriots then went on a 9-0 run to close down the gap.  The team kept battling and eventually a 3-pointer from Jean LeBlanc brought it to a one-point game with 35 seconds to play.  Then the game shifted to the foul line, where Manhattan did a great job of knocking down their free throws.  The Patriots rally came up short.  They lost by a final score of 81-85.
 
Joseph Taylor led the Patriots with 26 points and 8 rebounds.  Jean LeBlanc chipped in 18 points and Kevin Mack finished with 16 points and a team-high 5 assists.
 
This concludes the season for the Patriots.  They finished with a 16-12 record and will be losing just two seniors for next year, Jean LeBlanc and Kevin Mack.  Thank you to Jean and Kevin for your outstanding careers!