BETHLEHEM, Pa. - The 12th ranked Northampton men's basketball team picked up a crucial conference victory on Tuesday evening, downing the Community College of Philadelphia 88-85, at the Arthur L. Scott Center. 

The Spartans, who trailed for the first 35 minutes of the game, took their first lead of the night at 64-63 with just over 5 minutes remaining in the contest, and then held off the Lions down the stretch to earn the win.  

Trailing by 13 with 17 minutes left in the contest, the Spartan defense turned up the pressure and changed the momentum of the game, forcing CCP into turnovers and hurried  shots.  "Our defense was really the catalyst," explained Head Coach Brennan McCarthy, "as much as we had some players step up on the offensive end, it was our effort and hustle on the defensive end that really turned the game."

Gary Francis (Morrisville, PA/Pennsbury) led the winners with 21 points, followed by Amyr Fox (Harrisburg, PA/Central Dauphin East ) with 18, Michael Marable (Harrisburg, PA/Susquehanna Twp.) 17 and Kymir Roper (Upper Darby, PA/Upper Darby,) with 13. 

Northampton out-rebounded Philadelphia 40-33, including 18 offensive rebounds.  Roper led the charge on the boards with 12 rebounds, while Zykir Williams (Philadelphia, PA/Boys Latin Charter ) added 11. 

The win propels Northampton to 15-2 overall, 6-1 in Region 19 and 5-1 in the EPAC.

CCP falls to 11-6 overall, 8-3 in Region 19 and 4-3 in conference play. 

The Spartans return to the friendly confines of the Spartan Center on Thursday when they host NJCAA Division II Mercer County Community College at 7pm.