Trailing 66-46, the Bears reeled off six straight points to cut the deficit to 14. The Spartans pushed their lead back to 18 (70-52), but the Bears rallied again to within eight (70-62) with less than four minutes to play. After a pair of CWRU free throws, senior Rob Keller hit a three-pointer to cut the margin to seven. After a Bears’ steal, sophomore Neal Griffin took the ball the length of the floor for a lay-up.
Washington U.’s defense came through again, forcing Lafe into a five-second call. Senior Anthony Hollins converted on a spin-move along the baseline to cut it to 72-69. After Case Western Reserve had three opportunities to score at their end, the Bears finally corralled the rebound and pushed it ahead to Keller, who was fouled under the basket. Keller hit 1-of-2 free throws to draw WU within two points (72-70) with less than two minutes remaining.
Hollins recorded a tip-in with 12 seconds to play to cut the deficit to two points again at 74-72. Junior Richard Mullen, who finished with 13 points, added a pair of late free throws that sealed the win, and Hollins added a tip-in at the buzzer to round out the scoring.
Junior Mike Grunst, Milwaukee established the low post with 12 quick points for the Bears early in the first half, but the Spartans held the early lead behind seven points from junior Funso Lafe. WU took a brief lead at 25-24 before Mullen connected on back-to-back three-pointers from the top of the key to give CWRU 29-25.
Washington U. tied the game at 30-30 when sophomore Brandon York hit a three-pointer with about five minutes left in the half. However, CWRU put together an 11-4 run to end the period with a 41-34 lead; freshman Mason Conrad tallied seven points during the run. Conrad and Lafe led the Spartans with 11 points apiece as CWRU shot .514 from the field (18-of-35). WU shot just .375 (15-of-40) from the floor.
Case Western Reserve opened up a 48-36 lead early in the second half as Lafe scored five of its first seven points. After consecutive treys by Lafe and junior Carsen Oren, the Bears whistled for a timeout. The Spartans (4-8, 1-1 UAA) extended to a 15-point lead (55-40) with a little more than 16 minutes to play. By the 10:50 mark, CWRU led 63-43 after two more three-pointers by Mullen and Conrad.
Grunst finished with a career-high 20 points to lead WU, while Hollins added 17 points and six boards. York also notched 10 points. Conrad led all scorers with 21 points and 10 rebounds, and Lafe registered 18 points.
Washington U. (8-5, 0-2 UAA), which had won 19 straight meetings with Case Western Reserve, returns to action Sunday, Jan. 16 against Emory University. Tip-off is set for 1 p.m. at the WU Field House.