Box Score A missed free throw or botched layup don't seem like big deals throughout the ebb and flow of a basketball game, but when the game ends, those seem to be the plays that stick out the most, even if they seemed small at the time.

Those missed free throws and botched layups added up to a 71-62 loss for the Lancaster Bible men's basketball team on Saturday, as Penn St. Berks made more plays down the stretch and held on for the victory.

The Chargers opened the game on a 10-3 run in the first 3:04 of the game, but after a timeout, the Nittany Lions quickly responded, using an 18-2 run over the next seven minutes to take a nine-point lead. The teams traded buckets for the rest of the first half, but a late 7-1 run by the Chargers cut the deficit to three, 33-30 at the half.

Corey Leonard's three-pointer on LBC's first possession of the second half tied the game at 33-33, but Berks again took the game over and used a 15-3 run to build a 48-36 lead with 15:21 to play. LBC had chances to get back into the game, but turnovers and missed chances killed any chance of a serious comeback. 

"We just can't make plays when we need to," LBC Head Coach Marshall Tague said. "Our mental breakdowns seem to come at bad times."

Tague said he was proud of the guys for not quitting as they cut a 17-point second half deficit to six at one point, but eventually execution will have to come with hard work for them to be successful.

"We continued to battle, but we dug too deep a hole and we just have to execute better," Tague said. 

Corey Leonard was one of the few bright spots for the Chargers on Saturday as he finished with 15 points, seven rebounds, four assists and three steals. CJ Dunston also played well for LBC as he had five points and five rebounds.

"CJ's aggressiveness was great and I thought Corey was solid," Tague said. "That is what he is capable of and he has been shooting the ball well lately. We need him to continue to do that."

The Chargers (2-16, 2-8 NEAC) return to the court on Monday when they face Lancaster County neighbor, Elizabethtown at 8 p.m.