ALFRED, NY - Lonnie Taylor and Jabari Hibbert showed a new level of toughness on Wednesday evening.  Both players were spectacular and willed the Villa Maria Vikings to a 77-69 road victory at Alfred State inside the Orvis Activities Center.

Taylor scored a game-high 24 points and Hibbert held a last year's Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Player of the Year to just two points in Villa's third straight win.  Taylor was one rebound shy of a double-double while Hibbert secured a team-high 10 boards and also dished out six helpers and had two steals.

Villa raced out to an early 15-point, 27-12 lead before Alfred State answered with an 11-0 spurt of their own.  After taking a four-point lead into halftime, the Vikings stepped on the gas to open the second.  They scored the first seven of the half and eventually led by as many as 21 with just over six minutes left.  Taylor was a plus-16 for the game while Hibbert was a plus-12, the two best marks on the team.

The Vikings, who entered the game still ranked second in the latest United States Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA) Division II National Coaches Poll, forced 19 turnovers which led directly to 17 points.  They also got 29 points off the fast break. 

Seniors DeJaun Owens, Dominic Douglas and Jonathan Pozo all scored in double-figures as well.  Douglas was 12-of-14 at the free throw line and finished with 16 while Owens connected on three triples and scored 15.  Pozo was 2-of-4 from beyond the arc and finished with 10.

Tahaij Lewis finished with 22 points and 15 rebounds for Alfred State, who came into the game riding a four-game winning streak.

WHAT'S NEXT
Villa wraps up it's regular season with a home game on Saturday against Green Mountain College.  The Vikings will honor three graduating players (Pozo, Owens and Douglas) before thr 4 p.m. start.

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