Feb. 26, 2003

Box Score

Collegeville, PA - Ursinus guard Dennis Stanton scored 18 of his game-high 20 points in the second half to lead the Bears over Johns Hopkins, 78-62, in the Centennial Conference Men's Basketball Semifinals Wednesday night at Helfferich Hall.

Ursinus, the No. 1 seed in the East, improves to 20-6 and advances to the league championship game Saturday at 4 p.m., when the Bears host West No. 1 seed Franklin & Marshall. The Diplomats defeated Washington College, 92-62, in Lancaster in the other conference semifinal Wednesday. Hopkins falls to 19-7 and will hope for a bid in next week's ECAC Tournament.

After the teams battled to a 29-29 halftime tie, Ursinus opened the second half with a 15-3 run, taking a 44-32 lead on a three-point play by Stanton with 14:41 remaining. The Bears twice increased their lead to 13, the second time at 52-39 on a jumper by Steve Erfle with 10:59 to play, before Hopkins made a run.

JHU senior guard Brendan Kamm (Avon, NJ/Somerville) began the spurt with a jumper, and after he hit two free throws, Kamm buried a three-pointer from the top of the key to cut the lead to 52-46 at the 9:56 mark. Freshman guard Frank Mason (Silver Spring, MD/Barrie School) hit two foul shots to make it a four-point game, and after Stanton answered with a three-pointer, senior forward Steve Adams (Butler, PA/Butler) and Mason hit consecutive lay-ups to cut the Ursinus advantage to 55-52 with 8:02 left.

That would be as close as the Blue Jays would get, as Stanton hit another three-pointer to put the Bears up 58-52 with 7:45 to play. Hopkins twice cut its deficit to five, the second time at 60-55 at the 5:35 mark on a lay-up by senior center Mike Blaine (Washington, DC/Bishop Ireton), but Ursinus pulled away down the stretch.

Mike McGarvey scored 18 points, dished out a team-high four assists, and recorded a game-best five steals for the Bears, while Erfle recorded a double-double with 15 points and a game-high 13 rebounds. Conference player of the year Dan Luciano also posted a double-double with 10 points and 11 rebounds before fouling out late in the game.

Adams led Hopkins with 15 points, while junior guard Kevin Marquez (Oakton, VA/Oakton) finished with 12. The Blue Jays, who were out-rebounded 47-31, tied a school record by attempting 31 three-pointers. Hopkins made just six shots from behind the arc, including 1-of-15 in the second half.

Hopkins, which lost for the first time in five Centennial Conference semifinal games, stayed with Ursinus early. The Blue Jays trailed 14-12 at the 10:59 mark before going on a 10-2 run, sparked by two three-pointers from sophomore forward Eric Toback (Ellicott City, MD/Mount Hebron), to take a 22-16 lead with 5:41 left in the half. Hopkins again led by six at 27-21 with 2:43 to play after a three-pointer by Marquez, but Ursinus closed the period on an 8-2 run, including three foul shots in the final four seconds, to tie the game at the break.

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