Garnet Nipped in Westminster
WESTMINSTER, Md. - McDaniel made ten three-pointers in the first half and then withstood a furious rally by Swarthmore in the final minutes, defeating the Garnet 73-71 on Saturday afternoon in the Gill Center.
The Garnet (4-17, 3-11 CC) were down by as much as 22 points -- 35-13 with 7:14 left in the first half and then held the Green Terror to 22.6% (7-of-31) shooting in the second half to get back in the game.
The Green Terror shooters were feeling it early on, hitting 10-of-18 (55.6%) from beyond the arc to build a lead 50-32 lead when the halftime horn sounded. McDaniel guard Devin Keeny hit four triples in the first half to lead all scorers with 18 points. Garnet forward Ian McCormick '08 dropped in 14 first-half points to pace Swarthmore.
It was a different story in the second half, as McDaniel was unable to find the offensive magic it had in the first 20 minutes and the Garnet took their turn shooting at the hot basket. Swarthmore shot 50% (14-of-28) from the floor in the second half. Unfortunately for the Garnet, they also shot 50% (9-of-18) from the free throw line, a number that would haunt them when the final buzzer sounded.
McDaniel seemed to be in complete control of the game, leading 71-57 with 6:08 remaining in the game. Chris Rutland finished off a lay-up off a dish from Keeny to give the Green Terror a 14-point cushion. The Rutland bucket would be the final field goal of the night for McDaniel (8-13, 6-8 CC).
The Swarthmore guard tandem, junior Chris Casey and sophomore Matt Kurman, took over the game. Kurman made an old-fashioned three-point play at 5:43 and then sank a jumper at 3:50 to make the score 71-62 Terror. Casey converted his own three-point play at 3:18 to bring the Garnet within seven.
Swarthmore fed the ball inside to freshman post Jon Tundel on the next two possessions, and Tundel was able to cash in 2-of-4 from the free throw line. A Kurman lay-up with 57 seconds left brought the Garnet within two, 71-69.
McDaniel's Mike Dipiero sank one-of-two from the line and Swarthmore got within one point when sophomore forward Steve Wolf converted a lay-up with 38 seconds left. Will Talesnick nailed the second of two free throws to put the Green Terror back up, 73-71. McCormick had his effort blocked by McDaniel's Josh McKay and the Garnet were forced to foul. McKay missed both attempts at the line, giving the Garnet a final chance. Casey's lay-up attempt would not go and a final tip attempt by McCormick couldn't find its mark either as the Green Terror completed the season sweep of Swarthmore.
Keeny led all scorers with 20 points while Talesnick added 19 and McKay registered a double-double with 12 points and a game-high 12 rebounds.
Kurman topped Swarthmore with 18 points and contributed 10 rebounds for the first double-double of his career. McCormick contributed 15 points and 10 boards for his fifth double-double of the season. Wolf added 14 points for the Garnet.
Swarthmore held an advantage on the boards, 48-39, but lost the turnover battle, 24 to McDaniel's 18.
The Garnet return to Tarble Pavilion on Wednesday, Feb. 8 for a Centennial game versus Muhlenberg. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:00 p.m.