Jan. 7, 2012

Box Score

COLLEGEVILLE, PA - Freshman Jimmy Hammer poured in a career-high 18 points but it wasn't enough in a 71-55 loss at Ursinus Saturday afternoon in Centennial Conference action. The Blue Jays fall to 7-4 overall and suffer their first conference loss of the season, falling to 3-1. The Bears snap a two-game skid to improve to 4-9 overall and 3-3 in the Centennial Conference.

After a first half that saw seven ties and eight lead changes, Ursinus quickly took control in the second half, using a 12-0 run to take a 47-35 lead it would not relinquish. Jon Ward put the Bears on the board first in the second half, connecting on one of two free throws, followed by back-to-back layups from Jermaine Kamara. Kevin Janowski capped the run with a bucket in the paint to put the Bears on top by 12 just over four minutes into the second stanza. Hopkins made it an eight-point game with just over 11 minutes to play, punctuated by an old-fashioned three-point play from sophomore Daniel Corbett.

The Bears came back with a 13-0 run to take a 65-44 lead with just eight minutes to go in the game. Ward fueled the run with seven points, while Pat Vasturia put a stamp on the run with a triple at 8:13. Hopkins answered with a 13-2 run to make it a 12-point game, capped by a three-pointer from sophomore Jaraad Rogers with 1:48 to play. But that's as close as the Blue Jays could get in the closing minutes.

Ursinus led by as much as eight in the first half but a 12-4 run by the Blue Jays sent the teams into the lockerrooms tied at 35 at the half. Following a Ward layup at 4:45 that gave the Bears a 31-23 lead. Corbett sandwiched four free throws around a Hammer three-pointer to cut the deficit to one just 75 seconds later. Hammer then put Hopkins on top with a jumper at 2:59. Jesse Krasna swung the lead back to Ursinus with a bucket at 2:08 before a pair of free throws from junior Alex Pandrangi put the Blue Jays on top, 34-33, with 1:16 on the clock. A Tim McCarty free throw with eight ticks showing gave JHU a two-point lead, but Krasna would hit for two with time winding down to make it all even at the break.

Hammer paced the Blue Jays with a career-high 18 points and six rebounds. Corbett also finished in double digits with 15 points, while dishing out a pair of assists with two steals. Sophomore Aleksandar Nikolic tied his career high with five blocks, falling just two short of the school single-game record. Ward scored a game-high 17 points to lead four Bears in double figures. Kamara posted a double-double, grabbing a game-high 13 rebounds with 10 points.

Hopkins returns to action on Tuesday, January 10 as the Blue Jays travel to Allentown, PA for a match-up with Muhlenberg. The Centennial Conference tilt is scheduled for a 7:00 pm tilt.