BRYN MAWR, Pa., February 17, 2024 – In the first matchup of the season in the rivalry between the Monroe College Mustangs men's basketball team and Harcum College, the home team narrowly got the upper hand on Saturday, as the Bears squeaked out a 96-94 victory over the Mustangs. Monroe sees its 11-game winning streak come to an end and falls to 20-6 with the loss, while the Bears improve to 21-4 overall.
Saturday's first half was as close as they come, seeing nine lead changes as the Mustangs and Bears battled it out in the first 20 minutes. With 4:53 left in the first period, a pair of free throws by Harcum's Kendall Allen had the home team up, 31-25. The Mustangs fought back, eventually taking the lead again on a three by
Ryan Williams Jr. that made it a 36-35 score with 1:54 to go. Zion Lott hit a three right back for the Bears, but
Ziare Wells hit two free throws to tie the game. The Bears jumped back ahead and managed to hold onto a three-point advantage through the buzzer at 42-39.
The second half was just as tense as the first on Saturday. Monroe scored the first seven points of the frame to take a 46-42 lead. The Mustangs got a three by
Zatai Townsend and then a pair of foul shots from
Devere Palmer Jr. to take an eight-point advantage with 16:45 on the clock. The scoring picked up on both ends of the court, and the Mustangs did their best to keep up in the scoring, but a trio of threes from Harcum's Olsi Kurtaj put the home team ahead, 65-60, with 12:04 remaining.
Harcum's lead reached seven points before the Mustangs scored 9-of-11 to tie the game at 69-69. With Harcum back up by three,
Albert Vargas drained a long ball to tie the game once again. Later in the half, a jumper by Wells once again tied the game, reaching an 88-88 stalemate with just 2:21 to play. Ebenezer Ogoh later went 1-of-2 from the line with the clock reading 1:37 to give the Bears a 92-90 advantage.
Neither team was able to put the ball in the basket for over a minute before the Mustangs had to foul. Nick Jones made 1-of-2 for Harcum, keeping the Mustangs within one possession. Wells quickly drove to the hoop, hitting a layup to make it a one-point game with just nine ticks on the clock. Lott went to the line for the Bears, this time making both shots to make it a three-point lead again. Harcum then chose to foul and force Monroe to the line, where Vargas made both shots to make it a one-point game. Monroe immediately fouled again, and Ademar Santos only made one of his chances with less than four seconds to go. The Mustangs were then unfortunately unable to get a shot off after a timeout, falling to the Bears by just two points.
Vargas led the Mustangs with 24 points in the game, nearly hitting a double-double with nine assists.
Stefano Faloppa totaled 18 points with a team-high six rebounds. Wells added 17 points and four assist to go with three steals. Williams tallied all 10 of his points in the first half. Palmer was second on the team with seven assists, adding seven points, five boards and three steals.
The Mustangs will look to avenge Saturday's loss in two weeks when they host Harcum at the Monroe Athletic Complex. Before then, the Mustangs will play twice, first with a matchup at the MAC against CCBC-Catonsville this Tuesday, Feb. 20. Tuesday's tip-off is set for 7 p.m.
ABOUT THE ATHLETIC PROGRAM AT MONROE COLLEGE
The athletic program at Monroe College encompasses a total of 28 teams competing across nine sports. There are 20 varsity and junior varsity programs, as well the Monroe College marching band, competing on the New Rochelle campus as the Mustangs (NJCAA Division I). The Monroe Express, based out of the Bronx campus, has seven teams competing at the NJCAA Division III level.
For more information about the Monroe Mustangs, please visit us at
www.MonroeCollegeMustangs.com or follow us on social media: Facebook (
Monroe Mustangs Athletics), Twitter (
@MonroeMustangs) and Instagram (
@monroemustangs).
