WILKES-BARRE,  Pa. – Wilkes hosted Stevens University in a non-conference game on Feb. 26 where a clutch three-pointer from junior guard Sean Coller sealed the deal for a 69-66 victory. 

To tip off the game, neither team was successful in finding a bucket until first-year forward Trent Fisher kicked off the scoring run for the Colonels with a three-point play off of a layup. 

The Colonels took an early advantage, jumping out with a score of 25-11 with seven minutes remaining in the first half. 

However, the Ducks would not succumb that easily. Wilkes started to make silly mistakes, and Stevens capitalized off of those errors. 

First-year guard Matt Davidheiser came off the bench and decided that the team was not going to continue down that path and switched the momentum back in Wilkes’ favor. 

“The best thing about (Davidheiser) as a first-year is that he believes in himself and is a very confident player,” said head coach Izzi Metz. “He isn’t afraid to take a big shot, and those couple of shots he hit were huge. They stemmed the tide and gave us back some momentum that  could have switched into their (Stevens) favor.” 

The momentum sparked from Davidheiser allowed for Wilkes to close out the half with a score of 34-31. 

At the start of the second half, the Ducks found their stride and started battling Wilkes for the lead. 

The scores were held within eight points of each other throughout the entire second half. Each team found themselves a handful of short-scoring runs to keep each other in the game. 

In the final five minutes, Stevens dug their way out and found themselves eight points ahead of the Colonels, hoping they would be able to ride-out that lead for the remaining time on the clock.

Instead, senior guard Landon Henry went on a shooting tear, scoring four three-pointers in a row. 

“Credits to my teammates who found me and helped me get open,” said Henry. “When trying to fight back into the game, my instincts kicked in.”

With Henry’s extra 12 points, Wilkes found themselves back in the game and within striking distance to take it all. 

With a little over 36 seconds left to play, the Colonels were down by one point and looking to grab a big bucket. 

Henry drove to the right corner in order to pull the defenders away from Coller in the corner for a three-pointer.

As Henry expected, he was able to give Coller an open shot, who appeared to effortlessly knock down the three and put Wilkes up by two points. 

Enough time remained for Stevens to claim a victory over Wilkes, but a missed three-pointer by Jacob Krantz, a turnover and a foul allowed for junior guard Drake Marshall to get a steal and hit a free-throw and fully secure the three-point win. 

“When (Henry) drove and kicked it, (Coller) was able to step into his shot. I felt good at that chance of going in. (Coller) works on that shot a lot,” said Metz. “(Marshall) used his athleticism and his instinct to make that big play and knock down the free throw to secure the big win.” 

Wilkes beat Stevens 81-66 on the road the following day to put their record at .500, with Fisher and Davidheiser combining for 27 points to lead the Colonel effort. 

The Colonels return to action on Thursday and Friday against Delaware Valley at 7 p.m. for their final series of the season. A live stream of their home game on Friday can be found at gowilkesu.com.