Saturday's Hoop Review

One thing that is becoming increasingly clear about competition in the Centennial Conference ... it's good from top to bottom. No easy games ... no breathers ... the old cliche - "On any given day" - has never applied more than in our little Conference.

Example #1 - McDaniel 79, Ursinus 77. Huh? Green Terror senior Mike Dipiero canned a 25-footer as the horn sounded to give the home team a shocking upset of the CC's favorite in men's basketball. There's new life in the McDaniel men's basketball program behind first-year head coach Bob Flynn. Flynn walked into the dining hall on Friday, blew a whistle, and invited the entire student body to a Friday night "pep rally" and to Saturday's game. 420 attended the game, which may not sound like many, but was the most to attend a Terror men's game in many years.

Example #2 - Washington 81, Dickinson 74. Three nights earlier, the Red Devils had thrashed McDaniel, 69-48, while the Shoremen had fallen at Ursinus, 82-73. Washington's road woes have been well-documented, so it figured that Dickinson would have little trouble on the home hardwood of the Kline Center. Wrong! Joe Breslin tossed in a career-high 28 points to lead WC to the victory.

Example #3 - Dickinson 49, Washington 43. Earlier in the afternoon, the 4-1 Red Devils had their hands full with the 0-4 Shorewomen before a Patrice Johnson three with 1:22 remaining finally gave the hosts breathing room and the final margin.

Example #4 - Ursinus 58, Gettysburg 56. Is there a changing of the guard in women's basketball in the CC? The Bears' Stephanie Cavalier made three of four free throws in the final 20 seconds as UC held off the visiting Bullets. Ursinus is now just a game off the league-leading pace set by Dickinson and would be tied with the Red Devils and Johns Hopkins if not for a one-point loss to Swarthmore on a buzzer-beating jumper.

There's more excitement in store on Tuesday as first semester play draws to a close. We hope to see you at a Centennial game this week ... or join us on the internet with webcasts and live play-by-play.