WILKES-BARRE, PA (November 19, 2022) -- In their return to McGrane Gymnasium after a brief road trip, the King's College men's basketball team remained unbeaten at home as they improve to 3-1 for the season with a balanced 84-79 team win over Elizabethtown on Saturday afternoon. The Blue Jays now fall to 1-3 overall for the start of their 2022-23 season.
 
This was a great match up from the start as King's (3-1) maintained a lead until the visiting Elizabethtown (1-3) tied the contest at 29 a piece with 7:28 to go in the opening half. The Monarchs rebuilt their advantage to as many as nine points, 41-32, off a three from Tyler Faux with 3:31 to go in the half, but the Blue Jays chipped away at the deficit to see King's head into the break ahead, 45-41.
 
The Monarchs maintained their momentum to finally reach that double-digit lead, 67-57, off a jumper from sophomore Chris Patton with 8:27 remaining, but a 13-7 rally from the Blue Jays would see the King's lead dwindle to just four points, 74-70, with 3:54 to go on the game clock. Three pointers on back-to-back offensive possessions from Faux and sophomore Eamonn Walsh followed by a steal and score by Walsh increased the King's lead to 82-72 with 2:37 left in regulation.
 
Elizabethtown would make one final push, scoring the next seven points in the contest, but Patton iced the win with free throws after collecting a steal in the final seconds of the game to give King's the 84-79 win in McGrane Gymnasium on Saturday afternoon.
 
Eamonn Walsh paced the balanced scoring effort with 17 points, adding seven boards, five assists, and a team-high four steals. Carmine Castiello added 15 points with a team-best nine assists, while Patton added 15 points with five boards. Will Johnson rounded out the double-figure scoring effort with 11 points, while Garrett Burys continued his strong play with nine points and a team-leading nine boards with two blocks.
 
Tyreke Herbert led the Blue Jays with 20 points, going a perfect 7-for-7 from the field and 3-of-3 from beyond the arc, while Dylan Rowe posted a double-double of 14 points and 11 boards with a team-high five assists.
 
As a team, the Monarchs shot 45.5 percent (30-66) from the field and an equally impressive 42.9 percent (9-21) from three. King's also totaled 24 assists on their 30 field goals and collected eight steals on 12 Blue Jays turnovers. The Monarchs edged out Elizabethtown in points in the paint (36-34), points off turnovers (23-7), and fast break points (8-7).
 
King's will be back on the court on Monday evening as they travel to Clarks Summit, Pa. to take on Clarks Summit University at 7:00 p.m. in non-conference play.