ALLENTOWN, Pa. – One of its best defensive performances in years elevated the Ursinus College men's basketball team to a crucial Centennial Conference victory this evening. The visitors stifled host Muhlenberg from start to finish in a 57-43 triumph that was hardly pleasing to the eye but proved a thing of beauty for the Bears, who snapped a seven-game skid in the series and climbed back into the thick of the playoff chase.
Sophomore guard Brian Rafferty racked up a game-high 14 points, eight assists, and seven rebounds and senior guard Malik Draper scored 11 of his 13 points in the first half for Ursinus (8-9, 4-6), which moved into a tie with Muhlenberg (7-9, 4-6) for seventh in the conference standings. The Bears are now just a game back of Dickinson and Johns Hopkins, who hold the fourth and fifth spots, and a half-game behind McDaniel.
The 43 points surrendered by the Bears marked their fewest since holding Johns Hopkins to 42 in a 2011 contest, and the Mules' 26.8-percent output from the field is believed to be the lowest total by an Ursinus opponent in a Centennial Conference game. The Bears stymied the top 3-point shooting team in the conference to just 20 percent from downtown (3 of 15).
The first half – and the lion's share of the game – was mostly a slog, both teams' efficiency in the halfcourt marred by turnovers and solid defensive play. Ursinus, however, emerged from the muck with a double-digit advantage by manufacturing points in transition and capitalizing on a litany of Mule miscues.
Draper scored nine of the first 13 points for the Bears, slicing through the lane and converting steals into lay-ups on a pair of occasions. Sophomore forward Joseph LoStracco scored inside to make it 18-7 Ursinus at the 11:29 mark of the period, but Muhlenberg put together a strong stretch of play to close within 20-16.
Draper, however, got his hands on an errant pass and went the other way for a breakaway flush to quash the Mule momentum. Two free throws and a jumper by Rafferty extended the margin back to ten, and it grew to a dozen when freshman guard Matt Williams buried a 3-pointer from the right wing as the halftime buzzer sounded, propelling the Bears into the break with a 31-19 advantage and plenty of mojo.
Ursinus held a 14-2 edge in points off turnovers in the opening half, and Rafferty proved an adept maestro at the point, dishing out five assists without a turnover. The Bears held Muhlenberg to 28 percent from the field (7 of 25) in the stanza, and the 19 points marked a season low for an opponent in the opening stanza.
Rafferty's seventh assist of the night – and the 200th of his career – was a big one, an inbounds pass to Matt Williams, who banged home his third triple to hand Ursinus a 38-24 lead. Senior guard Mark Wonderling followed with an incisive cut to the cup and, after a few Mule turnovers, freshman guard Matt Margolis swished a midrange jumper to expand the surplus to 18 and force the home side into a timeout at the 11-minute mark.
The Bears hit a dry spell there, scoring just one points over the next five minutes and change. Senior guard Alec Stavetski converted a three-point play and a 3-pointer in a personal six-point run for Muhlenberg, trimming the spread to 43-34 with just under six minutes to go. But Rafferty hooked up with a cutting Wonderling, who scored off the curl to pour cold water on the Mules' comeback plans.
Stavetski continued his push with a bucket inside before Draper muscled his way to the hole for one of his own. Rafferty went 8 of 10 from the line in the final minutes to keep Muhlenberg at arm's length.
Draper added five rebounds, a block, and three steals to his final stat line. LoStracco finished with seven points and nine rebounds for Ursinus, which enjoyed a 42-33 edge on the glass. Matt Williams netted nine points and Wonderling chipped in six points and six boards.
The Bears return to the court on Saturday, when they welcome Dickinson to Collegeville for another critical Centennial Conference clash.