LANCASTER, Pa. – A spectacular lead performance by sophomore Eric Williams Jr. and a pair of strong showings from senior Matt Knowles and freshman Shane Stark in supporting roles added up to a masterpiece for the Ursinus College men's basketball team, which went to Franklin & Marshall and came out with a 102-86 victory in a Thursday night Centennial Conference showdown with the defending league champions.
Williams made six 3-pointers – five of them in the first half – on the way to a career-high 30 points, Knowles scored 18 of his 23 after halftime, and Stark made all six of his field-goal attempts en route to a career-high 13 markers for Ursinus (4-1, 2-0), which won in Lancaster for the first time since 2007. The Bears hit 10 treys and shot a sizzling 60.0 percent (36 of 60), their highest output in a conference contest since a 2011 game at Haverford.
Junior Zach Quattro offered 11 points for Ursinus, which had lost 15 of its last 16 against the Diplomats (3-2, 0-2) before one its most dominant all-around games in years. The Bears led wire to wire and cracked the 100-point plateau in a CC tilt for the first time since scoring 103 against Haverford in 2010, hanging triple digits on F&M for the first time since a 104-92 shootout in 2004. The Bears are the only team to ever reach the 100-point mark against the Diplomats, who were ranked 23rd in the d3hoops.com preseason poll, since the Centennial Conference opened in 1994.
Ursinus owned the glass to the tune of a 44-32 discrepancy, got 29 points from its bench, and limited the Diplomats to just 32.8 percent from the floor (21 of 64).
Brandon Federici poured in 26 points and Matthew Tate added 21 points and five assists, but the home side never recovered after a triple by Williams on the game's first possession kicked off an 11-3 start for the Bears. The Diplomats hung around until midway through the first half, when Ursinus made its move behind the inside-outside combo of Williams and Stark.
Williams buried 3-pointers on back-to-back possessions and Stark tacked on consecutive interior finishes to open up a double-digit spread at 29-18. The margin swelled to 15 at the break, at which point the Bears had already scorched the nets for 49 points. Williams made all but one of his six 3-point attempts in the opening frame, going into the locker room with 17 points.
Ursinus only got better after intermission, as Williams produced a personal 6-0 run to make it 61-42. F&M could get no closer than 11 as Ursinus coasted to its first 2-0 start in league play since 2008.
Far from letting up after a monster first half, the Bears shot a robust 69.2 percent (18 of 26) after the break, and Knowles was 9 of 12 at the line in his second consecutive huge second-half performance; the captain netted 25 points in last weekend's loss at Widener.
Williams, who has already been named CC Player of the Week once this season, staked his claim to another award after going 10 for 15 overall and 6 for 9 from distance. He is second in the conference in both 3-pointers made (17) and 3-point percentage (56.7).
The Bears got help on the glass up and down the lineup, with nine players grabbing at least three rebounds. Junior Remi Janicot led the way with seven, Knowles and junior Brian Rafferty (five assists) had six, and Quattro corralled five. Junior Joseph LoStracco made all three of his field goals and finished with eight points and four boards.
With a perfect shooting night, Stark is now 12 of 14 from the field for the season. Ursinus made at least seven 3-pointers for the fifth straight game to open the season, and connected on at least 20 free throws for the fourth time.
The Bears look to continue their hot start when McDaniel invades Helfferich Hall on Saturday for a 1:00 p.m. tip.
Highlights of the Bears' 102-86 win in Lancaster