2008 Woodie Awards
Wins just out of reach for Men's Basketball
Victoria Davis
Issue date: 2/1/07 Section: Sports
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It has been a tough season for Men's Basketball. They have picked away at leads to force overtime, seemed to pull away with large leads of their own and even shaken-up their starting lineup. Unfortunately, that "W" has been evasive. On Jan. 24, the team looked to etch that "W" on the score-sheet as they took on the Dickinson Red Devils. The Mules hit the court in an attempt to rid themselves of a five-game losing streak. They came out hard in the first half, and led by three going into the locker room with a score of 26-23, thanks partly to a four-point play by senior Chris Pothering. Pothering, who was fouled at the three-point line, still managed to knock down the shot and topped it off with a free-throw.
Ready to begin the second half, the Red Devils poured on the pressure and took a four-point lead early. It only got worse from there. Dickinson reached their largest lead of 25 points late in the game, and as the Mules began to claw their way back, they ran out of time and moved to a record of 5-12, 4-7. Meanwhile, the Red Devils improved their record to 5-12, 3-8. Pothering led the Mules with 13 points, senior Tom Scott finished second on the team with eight points, and freshman Peter Barnes tallied nine rebounds in the visitors' loss.
Three days later on Jan. 27, the team traveled to Gettysburg to battle the Bullets (7-11, 5-7). It seemed the Mules were not going to let this game slip away, and they led by as many as nine points. However, Gettysburg got itself back into the game. But in the final two minutes, sophomore Mike Bernardini grabbed an offensive rebound, put up a shot and broke a 50-50 tie, putting the Mules up by two. The Mules were able to hold on to a two-point lead until the final minute, when the Bullets' Joe Spierenburg hit a three-pointer, putting his team up by one, 55-54. But with just 1.2 seconds left, senior Justin Fields was fouled after going up hard to the basket. He was able to make one of his two free-throws, and the stage was set for overtime.
Overtime has not been good to the Mules as of late, and despite their strong effort at the end of regulation, they were unable to match the play of the Bullets. Gettysburg hit all of their shots in overtime, while their opponents were unable to convert on their first three shots. Gettysburg's Spierenburg proved deadly to the Mules as he blocked eight shots throughout the game and punched in a couple of devastating three-pointers. Fields led the Mules with eight rebounds and 18 points, with Bernardini close behind bringing in 14 points. Rebounds were split, each team grabbing 37. Muhlenberg fought hard throughout the game and managed to lead the majority of the time. But overtime is where it counts, and Gettysburg got hot at the perfect moment.
Ready to begin the second half, the Red Devils poured on the pressure and took a four-point lead early. It only got worse from there. Dickinson reached their largest lead of 25 points late in the game, and as the Mules began to claw their way back, they ran out of time and moved to a record of 5-12, 4-7. Meanwhile, the Red Devils improved their record to 5-12, 3-8. Pothering led the Mules with 13 points, senior Tom Scott finished second on the team with eight points, and freshman Peter Barnes tallied nine rebounds in the visitors' loss.
Three days later on Jan. 27, the team traveled to Gettysburg to battle the Bullets (7-11, 5-7). It seemed the Mules were not going to let this game slip away, and they led by as many as nine points. However, Gettysburg got itself back into the game. But in the final two minutes, sophomore Mike Bernardini grabbed an offensive rebound, put up a shot and broke a 50-50 tie, putting the Mules up by two. The Mules were able to hold on to a two-point lead until the final minute, when the Bullets' Joe Spierenburg hit a three-pointer, putting his team up by one, 55-54. But with just 1.2 seconds left, senior Justin Fields was fouled after going up hard to the basket. He was able to make one of his two free-throws, and the stage was set for overtime.
Overtime has not been good to the Mules as of late, and despite their strong effort at the end of regulation, they were unable to match the play of the Bullets. Gettysburg hit all of their shots in overtime, while their opponents were unable to convert on their first three shots. Gettysburg's Spierenburg proved deadly to the Mules as he blocked eight shots throughout the game and punched in a couple of devastating three-pointers. Fields led the Mules with eight rebounds and 18 points, with Bernardini close behind bringing in 14 points. Rebounds were split, each team grabbing 37. Muhlenberg fought hard throughout the game and managed to lead the majority of the time. But overtime is where it counts, and Gettysburg got hot at the perfect moment.