BETHLEHEM, Pa. -  The Northampton men's basketball team held off a late charge from Lehigh Carbon, downing the Cougars 91-86 on Thursday evening in a non-conference matchup at the Arthur L. Scott Center.

The Spartans, who led 44-27 at halftime, saw the Cougars scratch back to take a one point lead with 5:32 remaining on a Aquele Adderly lay-in, to give LCCC at 68-67 lead.  Northampton then outscored Lehigh Carbon 24-18 over the final 5 minutes to earn the victory. 

"We struggled at times tonight to find ourselves," commented Head Coach Brennan McCarthy, "but in the end we were able to fight through some adversity and pick up an important victory to start the semester."

Nasir Ruhani (Brooklyn, NY/Eagle Academy (NY)) finished with 30 points, 16 rebounds, 7 steals and 6 assists to lead the Spartans, while Nate Rivera (Bethlehem, PA/LIberty) added 22 points, including 4 3-pointers.

Ethan Sakwa (Tobyhanna, PA/Pocono Mountain West) chipped in with 11 points and Josh Washington (Bethlehem, PA/Executive Charter) hauled down 12 boards for Northampton. 

The win moves Northampton to 12-2 overall and extends their winning streak vs. LCCC to 14 straight games, dating back to November 17th, 2016.

Lehigh Carbon falls to 3-10 overall with the loss. 

The Spartans return to the Arthur L. Scott Center on Saturday when they host Sussex County Community College at 2pm.