ALTOONA, Pa. - Through 20 minutes of play against Penn State Altoona, it looked as if La Roche was going to comfortably continue its winning streak and move it to nine games, but the host Lions had other thoughts, coming back from a 16-point halftime deficit, ending the Redhawks eight-game streak, 62-60.
Scoring was limited in the early stage of the first half, as La Roche held a slim, 11-9 lead, six minutes into the matchup, then approaching the midwy point, with 11:13 remaining, Altoona still was within one-point, with a 16-15 score.
The Redhawks would finally catch some fire offensively and dominated the remainder of the half, utilizing a 15-0 run over the next 6:56 to take a commanding, 31-15 lead, and would overall, limit Altoona to just one field goal and a pair of free-throws the entire 11:13 before halftime, taking a 35-19 lead into the locker room.
Out of the break, the air changed after the first five minutes. La Roche continued to hold a double-digit edge until the 15:45 mark, then would build the lead that sat in single digits for a few minutes, back to 54-43, with 7:53 remaining in regulation.
That is when the game saw a drastic change, as the Lions ripped off a 15-2 run over the next 5:42, to take a 58-56 lead with the clock reading 2:11.
Both teams countered, as La Roche took a 60-58 lead with 1:04 remaining and then Altoona tied the game at 60-60 with 46 seconds on the clock.
The Lions would hold the ball for the final possession and a gme-winning bucket at the buzzer would complete the comeback, ending the Redhawks winning streak.
For the game, La Roche shot 22-for-62 from the floor (35.5%), 4-for-19 from three (21.1%) and 12-for-17 from the foul line (70.6%).
On the other side, the Lions ended the game shooting 22-for-59 from the field (37.9%), 3-for-23 from deep (13%) and 15-for-18 from the free-throw line (83.3%).
Only two Redhawks scored in double figures, led by Brandon Bell with 16 points and seven rebounds. Major Rainey followed with 12 points, falling just one rebounds shy of a double-double with nine.
La Roche stays on the road, when they head to Pitt-Greensburg for a pivotal matchup on Wednesday, Feb. 11 at 7 p.m.