READING, PA – The Alvernia University Golden Wolves men's basketball squad held off a furious second half comeback attempt by York to earn a 76-69 MAC Commonwealth win on Wednesday night in Reading. The game was York's first as a member of the MAC Commonwealth after missing out on the 2020-21 conference season.
Senior David Giuliani tallied a career-high 24 points in the loss for the Spartans.
 
Score: York 69, Alvernia 76
Records: York 3-3 (0-1 Commonwealth), Alvernia 6-3 (1-0 Commonwealth)
 
How It Happened
• The game was back and forth early as the Golden Wolves led 12-10 just under five minutes into the game. The Spartans stayed close and trailed by one on a Travis Stoll triple from the corner as Alvernia led 18-17 with 11:11 left in the half.
• The Golden Wolves then went on an 11-4 run over the next 3:38 of play. Keon Taylor had six points on the run as Alvernia led 29-21 with 7:05 left in the half. The hosts eventually built the lead to 12 at 36-24 on a Jacob Stoudt triple with 1:28 left. The Spartans cut into the lead in the final minute as they got five points from senior David Giuliani to trim their halftime deficit to 36-29.
• The Spartans shot the ball great in the first half, converting 52.4% of their chances from the floor. Unfortunately for York, they were extremely careless with the ball as they turned the ball over 14 times in the opening 20 minutes of play. York attempted 16 less first half shots than Alvernia.
• Alvernia got off to a great start in the second half as they smacked the Spartans with a 14-4 run that pushed the lead to a game-high 17 points at 50-33. The run covered the opening 4:25 of the second half as the Golden Wolves looked poised to blow the Spartans out.
• The Green and White answered in a big way as they ripped off a 13-1 run, cutting their deficit to five at 53-48 with 11:17 left in the game. The Alvernia lead vacillated between five and nine points over the next six minutes as every time York made a surge, the Golden Wolves hit a shot to keep the Spartans at bay.
• York trimmed the Alvernia lead to four at 69-64 after a pair of Giuliani free throws at the 2:22 mark but that would be as close as the Spartans got. Alvernia scored the next five points of the game as the lead would prove to be too great for the Spartans to overcome.
 
Spartan Leaders
David Giuliani: 24 points, 9 rebounds, 1 assist, 8-for-16 FG, 2-for-3 3PT FG, 6-for-8 FT
Travis Stoll: 12 points, 3 rebounds, 3 steals, 1 blocked shot
Logan Collins: 9 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists
Riley Dobraniecki: 9 points, 2 rebounds, 3-for-3 FG, 3-for-4 FT
Jackson Mascari: 8 points, 4 rebounds, 4-for-5 FG
 
By the Numbers
The Spartans committed a season-high 22 turnovers in the game which led directly to 21 Alvernia points … the Spartans attempted a season-low 10 three point field goals, making four … York has now shot 40% or better from three in three games this year … the Spartans shot 51% for the game and that's the fourth time they have been over 50% for the year … York tied a season low with seven offensive rebounds in the game … York had just seven assists to go along with their 22 turnovers, their worst ratio of the year … York attempted ten shots less than Alvernia … York was a plus seven on the glass … Alvernia ended the game with just 12 turnovers … the Golden Wolves were credited with eight blocked shots, the most by a Spartan opponent this year … Alvernia also had 15 steals, the high for a York opponent so far this year.
 
Spartan Notes
The Spartans fall to 6-8 all-time against Alvernia as they have lost six straight in the series … the two teams will meet again at Wolf Gymnasium on January 22 for the second game of the home-and-home series … senior David Giuliani set a new career high with 24 points, eclipsing his previous high of 23 set in the season-opening win over Dickinson … Giuliani is second in the league in scoring at 18 points per game and second in rebounding at 8.7 caroms per game … senior Travis Stoll recorded his third double-digit effort of the year with 12 points, four short of his career high … Stoll went 2-for-3 from distance as he is currently leading the Commonwealth in three point field goal percentage at 52.4%.
 
Up Next
The Spartans return home for the first time since November 17 when they host Lebanon Valley College in their first-ever MAC Commonwealth home game. Tip time is set for 3:00 pm and is the second game of a women's/men's Commonwealth doubleheader.