GRANTHAM, Pa. – The Ursinus College men's basketball team opened the season in grand fashion Friday evening, making 11 3-pointers on the way to a record-setting 95-66 rout of Mt. St. Vincent in the opening round of the TownePlace Suites Tip-Off hosted by Messiah.
Junior transfer Zach Quattro shined in his Bear debut, registering a double-double with 19 points and 10 rebounds to lead five other teammates in double figures for Ursinus, which equaled the program record for points scored in a season opener set in 1980 against Allentown. The Bears will meet the host Falcons, a 92-60 winner over Immaculata, in the championship game set for 3:00 p.m. Saturday.
Sophomore Eric Williams Jr. drained four triples on the way to a 14-point night, senior captain Matt Knowles posted 13 points in his return from an injury that cost him the second half of last season, and junior captain Brian Rafferty finished with 11 points and seven assists. All five Ursinus starters recorded at least ten points.
Sophomore Matt Williams added 11 points off the bench and junior Remi Janicot chipped in 10 points, while sophomore Zack Muredda stuffed the box score with eight points, six rebounds, and a game-high eight assists in his first collegiate action.
Quattro went 8-for-14 from the field and added four blocks for the Bears, who won their second straight season opener. The Le Moyne College transfer made 3 of 5 from downtown, combining with Williams Jr. (4 for 6) and Muredda (2 for 2) to go 9-of-13 behind the arc. Ursinus finished 11-for-23 from deep and 32-of-65 (49.2 percent) overall on the night, outrebounding the Dolphins 48-40 and getting to the foul line 31 times.
Ursinus led just 21-18 after a 3-pointer by Mt. St. Vincent midway through the first half, but a bucket by Quattro, two free throws from Rafferty, and another by Janicot pushed the margin to 39-26 at the 4-minute mark. Quattro scored seven points over a four-possession span, capping the personal burst with a 3-pointer that made it 49-34 just before intermission.
Quattro had 15 points by the break and Knowles netted 11 of his 13 in the first stanza for Ursinus, which shot 51.4 percent (18 of 35) and dished out 14 assists to just seven turnovers in the opening 20 minutes. Knowles crossed the 500-point threshold for his career with his ninth point of the period.
The Dolphins were still in shouting distance with 18:36 to play, trailing 56-42, but the Bears put the game to bed with a dominating stretch on both ends of the floor. Ursinus embarked on a 26-6 run over the next 10 minutes, eventually leading by as many as 34. Williams Jr. scored 11 straight points in the middle of the spurt, a scorching sequence that included three consecutive 3-pointers; the sophomore has made a trey in 14 straight games, the longest active streak in the Centennial Conference.
Rafferty made all three of his field-goal attempts and finished 5-of-7 at the stripe, also adding five rebounds to his stat line. Freshman Shane Stark also connected on his three lone shot attempts, racking up six points and eight rebounds in just a dozen minutes off the bench in his first contest. Fellow rookie Ryan McTamney drilled a 3-pointer for his first collegiate points.
The Bears assisted on 24 of their 32 field goals and held Mt. St. Vincent to just 33.3 percent from the floor (22 of 66).