Weekend Preview – February 1, 2014

weekend previewFour teams that are likely to make the Centennial Conference playoffs will be at Memorial Hall for a huge basketball doubleheader that highlights the first weekend of February.

Women’s Basketball vs. McDaniel (Saturday, 2:00)

It will be just like old times for these two teams. From 2004, when the Centennial Conference went to one division, to 2010, a McDaniel-Muhlenberg matchup in February usually had great playoff implications. Both teams qualified for the CC playoffs in six of those seven years, and they met in the playoffs four times.

The Green Terror (14-4, 9-3) finished under .500 in the CC in each of the last three years, but now it is back in a big way, tied in the loss column for second place. The Mules (11-7, 8-4) are just a game back, and as the playoff teams start to separate themselves out, games like this one are huge.

McDaniel comes in with a six-game winning streak that includes back-to-back 70-41 blowouts of Johns Hopkins and Washington. Muhlenberg has won six of seven since suffering a 52-45 loss at McDaniel in early January.

It could be another low-scoring game. McDaniel is second in the CC in scoring defense (51.7 points per game) and leads the league in steals per game, turnover margin and three-point field-goal defense. Muhlenberg, meanwhile, has allowed opponents to shoot just 30.8 percent from the field (24.5 percent from three-point range) and average only51.1 points over its last eight games.

wbbteam14pinkFollowing the game, one player on each team will receive the Aril Bryant Award in memory of a Mule player who lost her life to breast cancer last summer. Please visit the Muhlenberg team page to contribute to the Kay Yow Foundation, which supports those fighting breast cancer.

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Men’s Basketball vs. McDaniel (Saturday, 4:00)

Four days after defeating first-place Dickinson, Muhlenberg returns home to face another first-place team in McDaniel. The Mules’ first home game in two weeks matches the hottest team in the Centennial Conference against the hottest scorer in the CC and the league’s top defense against its second-best offense.

The Green Terror (14-4, 9-2) is tied for first place in the CC and has won seven straight games. It entered the week ranked ninth in Division III in scoring defense, allowing only 60.2 points per game. The Mules (12-6, 7-4) are tied for fourth place with Johns Hopkins.

Defense won out when the two teams met in Maryland in early January. The Mules scored 30 points in the first 13:34 in opening up a 15-point lead but managed only 20 points the rest of the way as the Green Terror came back for a 57-50 win. Muhlenberg has won 14 of the last 16 series meetings in Memorial Hall.

Junior guard Malique Killing scored 38, 33 and 35 points in the Mules’ three road games, becoming only the second player in CC history to record three straight 30-point games. The seventh-leading scorer in Division III at the start of the week, he needs just 26 more points to set the CC record for points scored in the freshman, sophomore and junior years.

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Indoor Track & Field at Lehigh’s John Covert Classic (Saturday, 10:00)

The indoor season is moving allowing rapidly for the Mule teams: this is only their third meet of the season, yet they’re just one month away from the CC Championships. They will get to compete against Division I athletes for the first time this season at Lehigh.

Wrestling at Gettysburg with New York University (Saturday, 1:00)

The shorthanded Mules wrestling team travels to Gettysburg to compete in its second straight CC trimatch.

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Weekend Preview – January 24-25, 2014

weekend previewThe home openers for track and wrestling and an important basketball doubleheader in Baltimore make for a big weekend.

Indoor Track & Field hosts Muhlenberg Invitational (Friday, 3:00)

Muhlenberg welcomes DeSales, Goucher, Neumann and Wesley for its only home indoor meet of the season. Last year, Muhlenberg athletes won 12 of the 26 events. Field events begin at 3:00, running events at 6:00.

Wrestling vs. McDaniel and Stevens (Saturday, 12:00)

Muhlenberg opens its Centennial Conference dual meet season with the first of its two scheduled home tri-matches. The Mules take on McDaniel in the first match and Stevens in the third. Both McDaniel (at 133) and Stevens (at 149) bring in nationally ranked wrestlers. Coming off his impressive win at Ursinus’ Will Abele Invitational last weekend, Mule freshman Jaryd Flank will make his home debut – although since McDaniel does not have anyone at 125, his first appearance probably will be a brief one to get his hand raised.

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Men’s Basketball at Johns Hopkins (Saturday, 1:00)

Two teams that were defeated in the Centennial Conference semifinals last year meet for the second time this season, with Muhlenberg looking to complete its fourth season sweep of Johns Hopkins in the last six years.

In the first meeting this season, the Mules saw their 16-point halftime lead pared to three but shot 60 percent in the second half to hold on for a 91-75 win.

Muhlenberg (11-5, 6-3) and Johns Hopkins (9-7, 6-3) are currently tied for fourth place in the CC, a game behind second-place McDaniel and Franklin & Marshall and two in front of sixth-place Gettysburg. The Mules have won three of their last four following a three-game losing streak, while the Blue Jays have rebounded from a four-game skid by winning five of their last six.

A win would push Muhlenberg to 7-3 in the CC for just the second time in the last 12 years.

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Women’s Basketball vs. Johns Hopkins (Saturday, 3:00)

The two most successful programs in CC history meet for the second time this season, with the Mules (9-7, 6-4) looking to continue their hot streak against the first-place Blue Jays (12-3, 10-0).

Muhlenberg has won four of its last five, including Wednesday’s decisive 67-43 win at Ursinus. Hopkins had a much tougher time at Ursinus last Saturday, needing a late rally to win 71-67. Dating back to last season, the Blue Jays have won 21 of their last 23 CC regular-season games.

Hopkins scored 14 of the game’s first 17 points and nine of the last 12 to edge the Mules, 65-58, in a back-and-forth battle in the first meeting this season.

The Blue Jays hold a 24-18 all-time lead in a series that includes 11 postseason meetings. Muhlenberg has won a game in Baltimore in each of the last three seasons, last year in the regular season and in the 2011 and 2012 CC championship games.

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Athletes of the Week – January 13-19, 2014

Leanna TallamyFemale Athlete of the Week – Leanna Tallamy, Basketball

Tallamy averaged 19.0 points on 58.3 percent shooting to take over the Centennial Conference scoring lead and help the Mules to two wins in three games. Tallamy scored 18 points in only 18 minutes in a win against Franklin & Marshall and led all scorers with 24 points – a career high for a CC game – in a loss at Swarthmore. She finished the week with a 15-point, 6-rebound effort vs. Washington.

Jaryd FlankMale Athlete of the Week – Jaryd Flank, Wrestling

Flank won a loaded 125-pound bracket at Ursinus’ Will Abele Invitational. The bracket included three past national qualifiers, including the top-ranked wrestler in Division III. In the final, Flank posted a dramatic win against a Washington & Jefferson wrestler who received honorable mention in the latest d3wrestle.com rankings, scoring a pin with just 16 seconds left.

Athletes of the Week