Box Score Abington, Pa. - Penn State Abington saw their 2012-13 campaign come to a close earlier this evening, losing a tightly contested 79-77 battle in the opening round of the NEAC men's basketball championship tournament to their rivals Penn State Harrisburg. Sophomores Avery Barnes and Mike Marvin led the Nittany Lions with a pair of double-doubles, but it wasn't enough, as Harrisburg staved off a late Abington charge to seal the victory.
 
The match started out with both teams trading baskets over the opening few minutes. Harrisburg jumped out to a four point lead at the 16:46 mark on a three-pointer from Jordan Gatchell, but Abington fought right back to take a lead of their own. Recently crowned NEAC Player of the Year Mike Marvin laid a ball in at the 14:57 mark off an assist from Max Alton, and Abington jumped ahead 15-14. Both teams continued to trade the lead back and forth several times over the next few minutes before Harrisburg drained back-to-back three pointers halfway through the period to take a 27-21 lead. Abington head coach Chris Potash immediately took a timeout, and over the next five minutes, Abington used a 13-7 run to tie the game right back up with 3:56 left to play in the period.
 
Those final minutes of the period, however, belonged almost entirely to Harrisburg. The visiting Nittany Lions closed the half on a 12-4 run, capped off by a long three-ball from Ethan Strayer with just seconds remaining in the half to take a 46-38 lead into the locker room. Harrisburg then came out of the locker room and hit a pair of free throws to open the scoring in the second half, giving them a ten point lead. The teams traded baskets once again over the next few minutes, but ultimately Harrisburg retained their ten point margin through the first three minutes of the half.
 
Then, it was Abington's turn to take over the game. A 10-2 spurt, capped off by a three-ball on the wing by Mike Colacci, got Abington right back into the mix, now only trailing 54-52 with 13:53 remaining in the half. Harrisburg initially managed to fight off the Abington charge, only to see their lead disappear entirely when Max Alton drained a three pointer of his own with 12:20 left to play, tying the game at 57 all. Both teams missed baskets and committed turnovers over their next few possessions, until finally the ball ended up back in the hands of Mike Marvin on the fast break, and the 6-5 sophomore knew exactly what to do with it. Marvin laid the ball in softly off the glass, and Abington had their first lead off the second half with just 11:31 left to play.
 
Penn State Harrisburg was having none of that, however, and came right back to retake the lead, draining yet another three pointer at the 9:44 mark to pull ahead 62-61. Over the next several minutes, Harrisburg was able to extend their lead to as much as six points. However, Abington fought right back again, tying the game at 73-73 with just 3:42 to play. On their next possession, Harrisburg retook the lead off a jumper from Jordan Gatchell. Then, a Nittany Lions turnover led to another bucket for Harrisburg, putting them ahead by four.
 
Abington cut their deficit to just two points with a layup from Avery Barnes with just over two points to play. Both teams traded empty possessions over the next minute-and-a-half, until finally Harrisburg pulled out yet another clutch basket. The Nittany Lions had just come up with a huge defensive rebound with thirty seconds left to play trailing by two, and were working the ball into the frontcourt to set up their offense. Out of nowhere, Joseph Farthing came from behind the Abington ball handler and tipped the ball directly into the hands of fellow Harrisburg player Jordan Gatchell. Gatchell, Harrisburg's leading scorer, drove the ball the entire three-quarters of the court in front of him and sent in a layup to put his team ahead, 79-75.
 
Abington used their final timeout to set up for one last push for the win. With seven seconds left, Avery Barnes found himself an uncontested slam dunk in the paint, getting Abington within two. After fouling three straight times, Abington finally got Harrisburg into the one-and-one, and it was Gatchell once again at the center of things for Harrisburg. The senior guard stepped to the line with four seconds left to take the first of the one-and-one free throws, but clanged the ball off the back iron. Mike Marvin was there immediately to pull down the rebound and took a dribble towards the frontcourt to find a fellow Abington player for a last second shot. However, Gatchell sprinted from his spot on the free throw line and came from behind Marvin, stealing the ball away and dribbling out the final ticks of the clock in the corner of the court.
 
For Abington, it was a heartbreaking way to lose in such a hard-fought affair. Both Barnes and Marvin finished with a double-double on the night, with Barnes leading all scorers with 26 points. Marvin finished with 20, while Max Alton tacked on another 12. Harrisburg finished with four players in double-digits, including team leader Thristan Lundy who finished with 18. Harrisburg shot a fiery 9-14 from beyond the arc in their victorious effort, and will now move on to face number one seed Morrisville State in the semifinals of the NEAC Championship tournament.
 
Abington closes out their season with a 12-14 record, three victories better than they achieved last season. The Nittany Lions only lose one senior from this year's squad, and will hope to return even stronger when they hit the hardcourt next season. Keep checking in at abingtonsports.com for all your updates on Nittany Lions athletics throughout the year.