(Carlisle, Pa.) – The Dickinson College men's basketball team held off a late rally by Haverford College to secure a spot in the Centennial Conference playoffs with a 68-65 win. The Red Devils add to their school record with their 11th win in conference play (11-5), improving to 13-10 overall.
Dickinson opened with an 11-5 start and stretched the lead to eight at the midway point of the half. Following an Ian Goldberg three-pointer, the Devils went on a 10-2 run to stretch the margin to 33-20 with 3:09 to play in the half. The Devils held a 37-37 lead at the break behind 15 first-half points from first-year Adam Honig (Chappaqua, N.Y./Horace Greeley). Honig hit 5-of-6 shots from the field, including a trio of three-pointers in the first half.
After the break, the teams traded baskets with the Devils maintaining the lead. Senior Matt Dolan (Chalfont, Pa./St. Joe's Prep) drained a three-pointer to put Dickinson in front, 53-41, with 9:20 remaining in the game.
Goldberg led a 6-0 run that later pulled the 'Fords within six, 58-52, at the 3:57 mark. Senior Pat Kearns (Hartford, Conn./East Catholic) scored to put the Devils up, 64-56, with 1:38 remaining, but the 'Fords weren't done yet. Cam Baker answered with a three-pointer and Haverford held on the other end, pulling down a defensive rebound.
Louis Cipriano drew a foul, hitting one-of-two free throws to cut the deficit to 64-60. The Devils missed the front-end of a one-and-one and Goldberg drove to the basket to pull Haverford within a field-goal with just 15 seconds on the clock. Dolan converted both free throws with 10 seconds on the clock.
Baker would connect on another three-pointer with just 2.5 seconds remaining to cut the Devil lead to just a point. Goldberg was forced to foul, putting Dolan back on the line. The senior sank both to give Dickinson a 68-65 advantage. The 'Fords had a last second chance from just beyond half court, but the shot fell short as the Devils held on for the win on senior day.
Goldberg led Haverford (11-11, 8-8) with a game-high 19 points on 6-of-8 shooting from the floor. Sam Permutt added nine points and a game-high 12 rebounds.
Honig finished with 18 points, hitting four three-pointers. Dolan was just shy of a double-double with 13 points and nine rebounds. He was perfect from the line at 6-for-6, adding a pair of assists, two steals and two blocked shots.
Kearns made some timely baskets, scoring nine points to go with four rebounds. Doug Jakiela (Wayne, Pa./Conestoga) came on to add nine points as well, hitting 4-of-7 shots on the afternoon.
The Red Devils improve to 13-10 overall and a school record-best 11-5 in the Centennial Conference. They are home again on Wednesday, hosting Gettysburg College at 8:00 pm.