After first-round success, Men's Basketball's season ends in Semis
Benjamin Levine
Issue date: 3/4/10 Section: Sports
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However, things hadn't been easy for the Bears either; they had lost four of their last six games, three of which were against playoff teams. Ursinus still had their explosive offense, however, which led the league with 73.4 points per game. The Mules hoped to counter with their defense and conference-leading rebounding.
Wednesday, the Mules walked into the Bears' gym with confidence. Characteristic of a playoff game, it started with each team trading shots. The Mules were able to pull away to a 17-10 lead, but the Bears scratched their way back to within 1 with a 6-0 run. Muhlenberg answered with Drain-O, three consecutive three-pointers from sophomore guard Justin Greenstone, junior guard Evan Tozer and senior guard/forward Ryan Foster (Australian for 3s), respectively.
On the ensuing possession, Greenstone swiped the ball and pushed it up court to senior forward Obi Nwizugbo who hit a jumper, putting the Mules up 28-18. Ursinus tried to climb back in with a three of their own, but Tozer quieted the crowd with a three-point dagger. Both teams then went shot-for-shot, ending the half with a score of 38-29.
At the beginning of the second half, Tozer hit another three - in the game, he went 5-7 from behind the arc. The Mules dominated the rest of the half, hitting 56% of their shots and out-rebounding the Bears 27-15. Tozer led the Mules with 17 points, Foster contributed with 16 points and 4 assists, senior guard Brian Frankoski had 14 points and Greenstone had 13 points, 4 assists and 2 steals. Freshman guard Rob Berish provided life off the bench with 6 points, going 2-2 from the field and the charity stripe, grabbing 2 boards, blocking 1, and stealing 1.
But, it was sophomore guard Spencer Liddic's day, posting another double-double. He was also a unanimous selection to the All-Centennial Conference first team. Liddic is the first Muhlenberg sophomore to make the first team since current Assistant Coach Mark Lesko did in 2001. "Liddic's honors were well deserved," said head coach Scott McClary. "He had a great year and will be a huge rock for us to build upon over the next two years." Foster (which is Australian for underrated) received honorable mention for the second straight year.