McDaniel College took an early lead and remained in control for much of the game, but watched as the Centennial’s defending champions from Ursinus closed the gap three times before finally recapturing the lead with 1:41 left in the game. Despite the legislative assistance that sent the visiting Bears to the line 41 times, the only foul shots that mattered were the pair nailed by Mike DiPiero (Huntington Valley, PA / Lower Moreland) in the game’s closing second to give McDaniel a 85-84 win at the Gill Center.
Ursinus cut into the Terror’s double-digit lead, and had closed the gap to six points with three minutes remaining in the game. The Bears’ embarked on an eight to one run to take an 81-80 lead with 1:41 showing.
McDaniel’s Kyle O’Connor (Columbia, MD / Mt. St. Joes) stopped the bleeding with a three-pointer to swing the lead back into the Terror’s favor, only to see his shot matched by the nation’s leading scorer, Dennis Stanton (North Wales, PA / LaSalle) with 24 ticks on the clock.
On the next Green Terror possession, DiPiero drove to the basket and got hacked by the Bears Mike McGarvey (Lower Gwynedd, PA / Penn Charter) with four seconds to play. DiPiero, who scored a career high 22 points, sank his pair to give the Terror the 85-84 win, which was sealed as the Bears’ floor length pass resulted in a scramble beneath the basket as time expired.
McDaniel nailed nine of 21 treys in the game, with O’Connor hitting three on the way to 20 points. O’Connor grabbed a team-high seven rebounds in the win, while Sam Anstead (New Carrollton, MD / DeMatha), Robert Wills (Arlington, VA / Bishop O’connell), and Alan Hoyt (Lexington Park, MD / Great Mills) each chipped in with ten points.
Stanton scored above his average 30.3 points per game average, giving the Bears 35 points, and tying a ten-year-old Gill Center record for points by an opponent. He came up just a pair short of the venue’s scoring record. Stanton hit just seven of his 21 field goals, and three of 12 shots from behind the arc, but scored 18 points from the line on 24 shots.
With the win, McDaniel improves to 6-12, 3-8 on the season, marking the first time McDaniel was won three Centennial games in a season since the 2000-2001 campaign. Ursinus falls to 11-7, 7-4 with the loss. The Green Terror returns to action on Wednesday when it travels to Carlisle, Pennsylvania to face Dickinson in Centennial play.
MCDANIEL COLLEGE 85, URSINUS COLLEGE 84 URSINUS COLLEGE (11-7, 7-4) Dennis Stanton 7-21 18-24 35; Mike McGarvey 4-7 4-4 14; Joe Scholz 3-8 4-4 10; Matt Fabian 4-6 2-2 10; Will Furey 2-6 0-0 5; Naquan Williams 1-3 2-3 4; Brian McEvily 0-3 2-2 2; Bret Jenkins 1-2 0-0 2. Totals 22-56 34-41 84. MCDANIEL COLLEGE (6-12, 3-8) Mike DiPiero 7-11 4-5 22; Kyle O'Connor 5-11 7-8 20; Sam Anstead 4-7 4-5 13; Robert Wills 5-12 0-0 10; Alan Hoyt 3-13 3-4 10; D.J. Hynes 3-6 0-0 6; Joe Hunter 1-2 0-0 2; Sylvanus Adenaike 0-1 0-0 0; Sean McNeely 0-1 0-0 0; Chris Rutland 0-2 0-0 0. Totals 28-66 20-24 85. Ursinus College............... 31 53 - 84 McDaniel College.............. 39 46 - 85 3-point goals-Ursinus College 6-19 (Dennis Stanton 3-12; Mike McGarvey 2-4; Will Furey 1-1; Naquan Williams 0-1; Bret Jenkins 0-1), McDaniel College 9-21 (Mike DiPiero 4-5; Kyle O'Connor 3-8; Sam Anstead 1-2; Alan Hoyt 1-4; D.J. Hynes 0-1; Robert Wills 0-1). Fouled out--Ursinus College-None, McDaniel College-Robert Wills; Chris Rutland. Rebounds-Ursinus College 47 (Joe Scholz 12), McDaniel College 29 (Kyle O'Connor 7). Assists-Ursinus College 13 (Mike McGarvey 5), McDaniel College 16 (Alan Hoyt 5). Total fouls-Ursinus College 20, McDaniel College 29. A-379