The Misericordia men's basketball team used a late first-half surge to pull away from rival Marywood and win the 18th Annual RAMADA Laurel Line championship, 77-61.

The Cougars improved to 3-0 on the season and set a new mark with six Laurel Line titles, eclipsing Scranton's five.

Senior captain Dom Del Prete was selected as Tournament MVP after putting up 14 points and seven rebounds in the championship game. Senior Mark Williams was also named to All-Tournament Team.

The Cougars were in some trouble early, as starting point guard Marcus Little had to sit out a vast majority of the half after picking up two quick fouls, and Marywood jumped out to a 21-18 lead with 7:48 to play in the half.

From there on out however, the Pacers would only manage one more field goal as the fast-breaking Cougars ran out to a big advantage. A Jeff Slanovec three-pointer tied the game up before Williams gave MU its first lead since the opening minutes of the contest.

The Cougar onslaught continued as Robbie Johnson finished a fast break, followed by another fast break where Slanovec found Mark Leonard with a nice pass to give MU a 32-21 lead. Williams then hit a lay-up to complete a 14-0 run. The Cougars would eventually take a commanding 41-24 lead into the break.

Misercordia only got better with the re-introduction of Little in the second half. The senior dished out three assists in the first four minutes of the second period, including one to Del Prete which gave MU its biggest lead of the game, 48-24.

Little finished with a team-high six assists in just 21 minutes of action. Williams had nine points and 11 rebounds, with Johnson adding 13 points. Slanovec matched his output from a day earlier with a team-high 17 points.

Marywood (2-1) was led by sophomore Matt Lepri with 17 points. Guard D.J. Strayhorn had eight points and four assists but fouled out in the second half, leaving the Pacers without their key playmaker.

The Cougars travel to Scranton on Tuesday for a 7:00 game.