The Basics
• Score: #14 Johns Hopkins-82, Muhlenberg-73
• Records: JHU (17-2, 11-1 CC) • MC (14-5, 6-5 CC)
• Location: Baltimore, MD • Goldfarb Gym
How it Happened
Junior Joey Kern scored 18 points to lead the 14th-ranked Johns Hopkins men's basketball team to an 82-73 win over Muhlenberg in the 19th annual Wall-O'Mahony Game.
Trailing 53-32 with 17:32 to play in the second, Dan Gaines hit a runner in the paint to spark a 29-7 run that turned a 21-point deficit into a one-point lead. Six different players scored during the run, which spanned nearly 10 minutes, and was fueled by five three-pointers. Matt Gnias capped the run with a jumper to put Muhlenberg up 61-60. The lead was short-lived however as Kern answered on the other end with a driving layup.
Gaines drained a pair of free throws to grab the lead back for the Mules, but a Conner Delaney layup put the Blue Jays on top, 64-63. That ignited a 9-2 spurt as Hopkins pushed out to a 71-65 lead with 5:17 to play. Gaines and Dallas Hoffman sandwiched buckets around a Kern layup and the lead was four. Gaines then trimmed the deficit to two with a pair of free throws with 3:34 to play.
Delaney responded with five straight points to stake Hopkins to a 78-71 lead with 1:04 on the clock. Kern and sophomore Tom Quarry followed with four consecutive free throws and just like that the lead was 11. Gnias scored in the paint with 27 ticks on the clock, but that would do it.
The game was back-and-forth early as neither team led by more than two in the opening five minutes. A Kern three-pointer kick-started a 16-4 run, capped by a Braeden Johnson three, to stake Hopkins to a 22-11 lead. After a Gaines layup, Quarry hit a layup to spark an 11-3 run that pushed the lead to 17 with 7:41 to play. The lead see-sawed up and down for the remainder of the half and the Jays took a 48-32 lead into the break.
Coming out of the half, Hopkins picked up where it left off, scoring the first five points to push the lead to 21. But this game was far from over as the Mules rallied with that 29-7 run.
What it Means
• Hopkins improves to 45-20 all-time against Muhlenberg and has won the last two meetings.
• JHU improves to 15-4 in the Wall-O'Mahony game and has won the last eight. This was the fourth meeting between the Blue Jays and the Mules in the Wall-O'Mahony game, with the Jays winning three of those.
• Hopkins runs its win streak to eight and remains second in the Centennial Conference.
Inside the Box Score
• Kern earned Wall-O'Mahony Game MVP honors with 18 points going 5-of-7 from the floor and 6-of-6 from the line. He also grabbed three rebounds, one steal and handed out three assists. Delaney added 16 points, two assists and five steals.
• Quarry scored 13 points and just missed his first career double-double as he grabbed a career-high nine rebounds. Sophomore Ethan Bartlett also just missed a double-double with 12 points and eight boards.
• Gaines scored a game-high 28 points to earn MVP honors for the Mules. He also had a team-best seven rebounds and five assists. Gnias added 14 points while Hoffman chipped in 11 points.
Up Next
• Hopkins is back in action on Thursday, February 6 as the Blue Jays travel to Carlisle, PA to take on Dickinson. Tip-off at Kline Gymnasium is slated for 8:00 pm.