The Lancaster Bible College men's basketball team won for the fifth time in six games on Saturday, downing Penn St. Abington, 74-59 at Horst Athletic Center. The Chargers are now 7-9 overall and 5-2 in North Eastern Athletic Conference play, while the Nittany Lions fell to 7-9 overall and 2-5 in conference action. Saturday's victory is also Lancaster Bible's fifth straight home win, as the Chargers are now 5-2 at Horst Athletic Center this season, and haven't lost at home since Dec. 3 against Cabrini.
 
How it Happened: The teams traded baskets in the opening five minutes, but back-to-back baskets from AJ Holmes and Brion Elliott gave the Chargers an 11-7 lead with 14:34 remaining in the first half. Penn St. Abington cut its deficit to two at 19-17 a few minutes later, but Lancaster Bible regained control late in the half, and led 33-25 with 1:04 remaining after a 3-pointer from Kaleb Murry.
 
After three straight points from Penn St. Abington, the Chargers got late free throws from William Afoakwah and led 35-28 after 20 minutes of play.
 
Britton Beachy and the Chargers came out firing on all cylinders in the second half, as Beachy scored all seven points in a 7-0 run over the first 2:29 of the second frame to give Lancaster Bible a 42-28 lead. The Nittany Lions knocked down a 3-pointer to stop the run, but Lancaster Bible used a 10-0 run to take a 52-31 lead, as Elliott capped the run with a jumper, and Lancaster Bible outscored Penn St. Abington 17-3 over the first 8:26 of the second half.
 
The Nittany Lions slowly chipped away at their deficit however, and trailed just 60-49 with 6:17 to play after a 4-point play from Amir Hill. The Chargers withstood the run however, and increased the lead back to 17, and produced the final score on a jumper from Luke Beers with 19 seconds remaining.
 
 
By the Numbers: Lancaster Bible shot 49.1 percent (28-of-57) from the field, including 7-of-21 from 3-point range…Penn St. Abington shot 36.7 percent (18-of-49), and was 7-of-22 from beyond the arc…Lancaster Bible caused 22 turnovers, and led 27-8 in points off of turnovers…Beachy led three scorers in double figures for the Chargers with 16 points, and also added eight assists and seven rebounds…Shewbridge had 12 points and three assists, while Elliott was the third player in double figures with 10 points, and he also chipped in with three assists and three steals…Afoakwah also had six points and 10 rebounds for the Chargers…AJ Holmes finished with six points…Amir Hill had a game-high 18 points for the Nittany Lions.
 
News & Notes: Lancaster Bible is now 13-7 all-time against Penn St. Abington…The Chargers and Nittany Lions split the season series last year, as each team won on the other team's home floor…Lancaster Bible's five-game home winning streak is the longest for the program since the team finished the 2017-18 season with 10 straight home victories en route to a NEAC Championship…The Chargers shot over 40 percent for the sixth time in seven games, and Lancaster Bible is 5-1 in those six games.
 
Up Next: Lancaster Bible returns to the floor on Wednesday, as the Chargers host Penn College at 5:30 p.m…Wednesday will be Staff & Faculty Night, and all staff and faculty from Lancaster Bible are welcome to a pre-game reception in the mezzanine of the Horst Athletic Center where light refreshments and drinks will be served.