WESTMINSTER, Md. – The Ursinus College men's basketball team dominated the boards in Saturday's Centennial Conference showdown at McDaniel, but the Green Terror made several big plays down the stretch to hand the streaking Bears a 74-71 setback.
Junior Zach Quattro had 16 points and 12 rebounds, but the Westminster woes continued for Ursinus (10-7, 7-3), which has dropped seven straight trips to McDaniel. Senior Matt Knowles and junior Remi Janicot posted 15 points apiece, but Josh McWilliams' game-high 21, including a big 3-pointer in the final minute, were sufficient for the Green Terror (9-8, 5-5) to deal the Bears their first loss in six conference road games.
Ursinus started fast, scoring the game's first six points, and never trailed in the first half. The Bears led 16-8 after back-to-back triples by Knowles, and the margin ballooned to 27-16 after a 9-0 run that featured a trey by junior Brian Rafferty.
McDaniel closed within 37-33 at the break and grabbed its first lead on a lay-up by Isaac Ray that made it 40-39 with 16:35 to play. Freshman Shane Stark's bucket swung the pendulum back in the Bears' favor, but a long ball by David DiMeo brought it right back to the home side.
The Green Terror never trailed again, though Ursinus managed to climb out of a seven-point hole with 6:06 remaining on the back of an 11-4 spurt that culminated in seven straight points for Janicot. The junior's three-point play at the 3:04 mark tied the game at 64, but a quick strike by McDaniel derailed the Bears' comeback agenda.
Austin Cannon's tough lay-up gave the home side the lead for the last time, and McWilliams streaked down-court for a lay-in after stepping in front of an errant pass. Janicot's free throws made it 68-66 with 1:37 left, and McWilliams buried a left-wing 3-pointer for a five-point cushion on the ensuing possession. Rafferty's feed to Janicot was good for two, and Ursinus had one last chance after getting a stop on the other end, but Quattro's good look at a triple from the right wing rolled around and out. McWilliams corralled the rebound and made two foul shots to ice it.
Cannon finished with 19 points for McDaniel, which got eight points each from Nick Perugino, DiMeo, and DJ Harper.
The double-double was the fourth of the season for Quattro, who finished 7 for 12 from the floor. The junior transfer has been on fire of late, averaging 16.3 points on 59-percent shooting (46 for 78) over his past seven outings. Quattro has made more than half his shots in seven of his last eight.
Janicot went 7 for 8 at the line, three days removed from a 13-for-15 effort at the stripe in Wednesday's triple-overtime win at Muhlenberg, and grabbed six rebounds. Rafferty made all three of his field goals and finished with eight points, with Stark adding four points and seven rebounds. With two assists, Rafferty became only the 16th player in CC history to reach 300 for his career. He is the sixth Bear to achieve the milestone.
Only one player had more than three rebounds for McDaniel, which was outrebounded 42-22. Ursinus snagged 19 offensive rebounds, leading to a 22-2 advantage in second-chance points, but committed 14 turnovers while forcing only eight. The Green Terror shot 48.9 percent from the field (23 of 47) and 22 for 29 at the line (75.9 percent), while the Bears went 42.4 percent from the floor (25 of 59) and made only 5 of 21 (23.8 percent) from 3-point range.
The men's basketball team hosts Haverford on Thursday, January 26.