Allegheny College finished the day plus-11 in points off turnovers and had four players score in double figures as the Gators continued their climb up the North Coast Athletic Conference standings with a 75-68 victory over Denison University on Saturday in Meadville, Pa.

Even though the two teams committed roughly the same number of turnovers, Allegheny was able to convert DU's 21 giveaways into 23 tallies while the Big Red only came up with 12 points off 17 Gator turnovers.

Although the score at the half read 42-34, it was contested a lot closer then the eight-point margin.  The opening 20 minutes saw 10 lead chances and was tied five different times.  The eight-point lead came about thanks to a 12-4 Gator run that spanned the final 4:08 of the first frame.

Allegheny expanded their lead to 69-52 with 7:14 left in regulation.  Denison orchestrated a 16-4 run that spanned 6:02 and trimmed the margin down to 73-68 with 13 ticks on the clock.  The run featured seven points from senior Chris Luther (Dayton, Ohio/Oakwood), five from rookie Dimonde Hale (Columbus, Ohio/Northland) and four points from sophomore Josh Leuchtag (Houston, Texas/Lamar).  However, the Gators knocked down 2-of-4 free throws in the final 11 seconds to secure the victory.

Allegheny shot 44 percent from the field, while DU hit 42 percent from the floor.  Denison held the edge over AC in points in the paint (42-40), second chance tallies (23-15), and points off the bench (31-26).  The Big Red also outrebounded the Gators 42-38.

Luther led all scorers with 22 points, while Hale netted 16 tallies.  Leuchtag finished the day with 12 points and eight boards, both career highs, while junior Larry Farmer (Gurnee, Ill./Warren Township) recorded 10 rebounds and four steals, both game highs, in 34 minutes of action.

Allegheny was paced by Craig Devinney's 17 points, while George Raftis chipped in 16 points.  Donte Briscoe and James Ness added 11 and 10, respectively, off the bench.  Henry Heeter led the team on the glass with eight rebounds, while Raftis and Briscoe each had seven boards.

The Gators improve to 8-8 on the year and 5-3 in the NCAC, while Denison falls to 3-14 overall and 3-5 in the league.  DU returns to action on Wednesday when they host conference rival Kenyon College at 6 p.m.