READING, Pa.– Eastern University Men's Basketball saw its MAC Commonwealth woes continue as the host Albright College Lions used aggressive defense and second-chance points to pull away to an 88-78 win. The Lions (10-7, 5-2) scored 19 second-chance points and held the Eagles to only 14 foul shots to stay with the top half of the league in the standings. Connor Fleet led five Eagles in double-figures with a career-high 17 points.

After trailing by seven at halftime and ten early in the half, the Eagles (8-10, 1-6) had a pair of second-half leads. Zayd Lee sparked the rally with a 3-pointer and a lay-up before Arkese Claiborne scored five in a row to tie the game at 51 with 14 minutes to play. The game stayed within a possession and the Eagles took their first lead at 62-61 on a Nick Mate 3-pointer with ten and a half minutes to play. After the Lions split a pair at the lion, Mate gave the Eagles a two-point edge with an inside hoop.

The Eagles missed on three chances to expand the lead, and then things fell apart. Zubair Lee offered a strong contest on a dunk attempt from Phanique Dupree, but the blocked effort rolled around the rim and in as the whistle blew for a foul. When Dupree missed the free throw, the Eagles missed the box out chance and the Lions stole another possession. Over the next 90 seconds, the Lions got two more offensive rebounds on missed free throws and made all five of their field goal attempts. Eastern took only one shot in the 13-0 run.

Zubair Lee hit a jumper to stop the run, but the Lions had six more points in answer, and the hosts' lead stretched to 15, and there would not be another comeback.

The Eagles had only ten turnovers in the game, but three of those came in the critical second run. Dupree was a consistent problem for the Eagles with eight blocks. He had 14 points, and 10 rebounds to finish two rejections short of a triple-double.

The Eagles shot only 13-of-35 in the first half but were within two points with two and a half minutes to play in the period. A 9-to-4 Albright run to close the frame sent the Lions to the locker room with a 40-33 lead. Eric Chamberlain, who finished with a game-high 34, had 14 to lead all scorers at the break. Fleet made three 3-pointers and had 11 points to lead the Eagles.

Zubair Lee finished with 12 points and 14 rebounds but only made 6-of-15 from the floor. Claiborne scored 15 on 12 shots, and Mate and DaRon Sherman each had 12.

Things do not get easier for the Eagles as they host MAC Commonwealth co-leading York on Saturday at 3:00 pm and Widener next Wednesday.