Championship Central
Ursinus and Franklin & Marshall both cruised to convincing opening round wins in the Centennial Conference men's basketball tournament on Tuesday night. Third-seeded Ursinus defeated sixth-seeded McDaniel 81-62 while fourth-seeded Franklin & Marshall toppled fifth-seeded Swarthmore 80-59.
Friday's semifinals will be hosted by top-seeded Gettysburg and second-seeded Johns Hopkins, with both games set for 6 p.m. tip-offs. Gettysburg hosts F&M while Hopkins hosts Ursinus.
Bullets at second-seeded Johns Hopkins at 8 p.m. and the Bears at top-seeded Franklin & Marshall at 7:30 p.m.
Ursinus is back in the semifinals for the second straight season while defending champion F&M advanced to the semifinals for the third year in a row.
In Collegeville, Pa., Ursinus used a big first half to power past McDaniel 81-62 on Tuesday evening at Helfferich Hall. With the win, the Bears improved to 18-8 overall while the Green Terror wrap up their season at 16-10.
Mohamed Toure carried his dominant February stretch into the postseason by recording a game-high 24 points while totaling four rebounds, and three blocks. Toure now has scored at least 21 points in six of his last seven contests. Nick Nocito added 19 points on 8-of-13 shooting and 3-of-5 from deep, also recording seven assists, five rebounds, and one steal.
David Kearney paced McDaniel in the defeat with 23 points, seven rebounds and three steals.
In Lancaster, Pa., F&M led by as many as 30 points en route to a 80-59 victory over Swarthmore at the Mayser Center. The Diplomats improve to 22-4 with the win, while the Garnet end the year at 13-13.
A 24-point night with six triples from Vakaris Grauslys led the offense on a day where the Diplomats shot 49.1% on field goals and 50.0% on threes, totaling 11. Kevin Nowoswiat notched his sixth double-double of the season on 18 points and 10 rebounds with three steals, while Steve Donahue had eight points, a team-best four steals, and five rebounds.
Devin Burger paced the Garnet with 14 points and seven rebounds in the loss.
FIRST ROUND: Tuesday, Feb. 24 | at #3 & #4 seeds
#3 Ursinus d. #6 McDaniel, 81-62 | Box Score
#4 Franklin & Marshall d. #5 Swarthmore, 80-59 | Box Score
SEMIFINALS: Friday, Feb. 27 | at #1 & #2 seeds
#3 Ursinus at #2 Johns Hopkins, 6 p.m. | BUY TICKETS
#4 Franklin & Marshall at #1 Gettysburg, 6 p.m. | BUY TICKETS
CHAMPIONSHIP: Sunday, March 1 | at highest remaining seed
Semifinal winners, time TBA
