MEADVILLE, Pa. – Allegheny survived a frenzied finish to win its conference opener, and earn head coach Bob Simmons his first victory as a Gator, with a 71-67 decision over visiting Hiram at the Wise Center.

Junior Evan Zabriski led all scorers with 22 points and added 13 rebounds for his third double-double of the season, while junior Conor Macomber scored 18 points and senior Chris Milon 14, including a pair of free throws with three seconds left that sealed the victory.

The Gators overcame 24 turnovers against a frenetic press/trap Hiram defense by shooting an efficient 48 percent from the field (25-for-52) and 88 percent from the foul line (14-for-16), while owning a commanding 44-30 edge in rebounding. 

Allegheny got off to a strong start, opening up a 9-2 lead just two minutes into play, highlighted by a pair of Macomber three-pointers.  Hiram chipped away to earn its first lead of the night, 15-14, with 10 minutes left in the half after a steal and dunk by JJ Woodson.  The teams traded baskets back-and-forth over the next three minutes, before the Terriers scored six unanswered points in a 50-second span to open up a 26-22 lead with 5:13 left until the break.

The Gators then seized momentum to close out the half.  Three-pointers by  Zabriski and Macomber a minute apart put Allegheny back in front, 28-26, at the three-minute mark, before Milon converted on a conventional three-point play to go up 31-26 with 1:12 left.

A pair of Hiram free throws cut the gap to three with 48 seconds left, but the Gators ended the half with a flourish.  With 30 seconds left, Zabriski hit a back door layup on a feed from Evan Schweitzer, before Macomber came up with a steal on Hiram's ensuing trip.  The junior then fed Zabriski with a break out pass at half court, who laid it in at the buzzer to send the Gators into the break with a 35-28 lead.

Allegheny's lead would reach double figures four minutes into the second half after layups by Schweitzer and Zabriski, and after Hiram cut it to six, the Gators took advantage of a Terrier technical foul to open it back up to 10, as Zabriski hit both free throws before Brandon Smith closed out the four-point possession with a layup at the 12:30 mark to make the score 46-36.
 

The Terriers closed the gap in a hurry, using a trio of three-pointers in a 90-second span to rattle off an 8-0 run and pull to within one, 48-47, with 10:34 left in regulation.
Billy Urso's three-pointer with 10 minutes left put the Gators in front 51-47, before the margin would swell back up to eight after a Smith layup and two free throws from Schweitzer.  The teams went buckt-for-bucket over the next three minutes, but another Hiram trifecta closed the gap to three, 60-57, with 5:57 remaining.

Allegheny again looked for some breathing room, as a three by Brian Holland was followed by a pair of Macomber freebies to go up 65-57 with 4:50 left, but the Terriers again roared back, countering with a 9-2 run, fueled by a trio of steals, to pull to within 67-66 after a three by Paul Ortiz with 57 seconds left in regulation.

The Terriers forced another Gator turnover on the ensuing possession, and had a chance to take the lead, but missed a pair of free throws after Allegheny was whistled by a flagrant foul.  Still with possession after the second missed foul shot, the Terriers were again unable to pull ahead, as Zabriski blocked a layup attempt.  Urso picked up the rebound, and fired a baseball pass to a waiting Zabriski at half court.  The junior then sent home an emphatic two-handed dunk to put the Gators up 69-66 with 24 ticks left.

Hiram made one of two free throws on the other end, and then picked up another steal on the ensuing inbounds play.  A shot with seven seconds missed the mark, with Milon skying for the rebound.  He was immediately fouled, and proceeded to put the game away with a pair of free throws with six seconds left to provide the final margin of 71-67.

Schweitzer enjoyed a solid all-around game for the Gators, scoring six points while adding eight rebounds – including three offensive – and a team-leading four assists.  Macomber led Allegheny with three steals, while he hit a season-high four three-pointers and went a perfect 6-for-6 from the line.

The Terriers, who connected on six three-pointers in the second half after going 1-for-13 from distance in the first 20 minutes, saw four players in double figures, led by 15 points by Ortiz and 13 by Kelvin Jones, who led his team with six rebounds.   Woodson had 12 points, and tallied five of his team's 16 steals.

The Gators will now take to the road for a pair of NCAC contests before the holiday break, beginning with this Saturday's 3 p.m. contest at Wittenberg.