The Basics
• Score: #12 Johns Hopkins-99, Ursinus-90
• Records: JHU (11-2, 7-1 CC) • UC (8-4, 5-2 CC)
• Location: Collegeville, PA • Helfferich Hall
• The Short Story: In a battle of two of the top-scoring teams in the Centennial Conference, 12^th-ranked Johns Hopkins came out on top, 99-90, at Ursinus Saturday afternoon.
 
How it Happened
• Trailing by one with 11:20 to play, Delaney scored six straight points, followed by a pair of Braeden Johnson free throws, and in just 79 seconds the Blue Jays were up 67-60. The Bears answered with a 6-2 spurt, fueled by a four-point play by Ryan Hughes, to pull within three at 9:04.
• Hopkins and Ursinus traded buckets over the ensuing two minutes and JHU led 74-70. Sidney Thybulle hit one of two free throws and then Johnson drained a three and just like that lead was eight. Trevor Wall and Sean Neylon then sandwiched scores around a Nnake bucket in the paint and the Blue Jays led 80-74 with 3:57 to play.
• Nnake responded with two from the charity stripe and then a Delaney triple pushed JHU's lead to double digits just 55 seconds later. Wall answered on the other end with a three-pointer and the parade to the free throw line to began. Hopkins would go 13-of-17, with a Delaney layup mixed in, over the final 2:28 to secure the 99-90 win.
• Hopkins jumped out to a 12-5 lead with Thybulle and Nnake combining for seven points. Peyton Vostenak hit from downtown to spark a 12-2 run that saw the Bears take a 17-14 lead on a Hughes three-pointer at 12:26. Delaney responded with a three of his own, just nine seconds later and the teams' were knotted at 17. Delaney gave JHU the lead with a driving layup and Tom Quarry followed with a pair of free throws to put JHU up 21-17.
• The lead was short-lived however as Ursinus answered with a 12-4 run to turn that four-point deficit into a four-point lead in less than three minutes. The Blue Jays and the Bears swapped scores over the final 7:47 and went into the lockerroom tied at 42. Over the final 7:47, the lead changed hands three times, there were two ties, and neither team could lead by more than four.
• Delaney scored the first five points of the second half to stake Hopkins to a 47-42 lead. Ursinus once again answered as the Bears used an 8-2 run and took the lead on a Neylon three-pointer at 16:37. Nnake responded with back-to-back layups to swing the lead back to the Blue Jays. Hughes did one better, scoring five unanswered to put Ursinus up 55-53.
• Nnake went to work again in the post with four straight points and it was 57-55 Hopkins with 13:21 to play. Kyle Maurer grabbed the lead back for Ursinus with a triple but a Thybulle take away and dunk put the Jays back on top. Maurer answered with a pair of free throws on the other end to put the Bears up 60-59 with 11:43 left. It would be their last lead of the game as a Delaney jumper in the paint would give the Blue Jays back the lead, for good as it turned out.
 
What it Means
• Hopkins improves to 58-46 all-time against Ursinus and has won seven straight in the series.
• The Blue Jays sit alone in second place in the Centennial Conference standing, one game back from the Swarthmore Garnet.
 
Inside the Box Score
• Delaney led all scorers with a career-best 39 points, which is tied for the second most points in school single-game history. He also grabbed five rebounds and handed out a pair of assists.
• Nnake poured in a career-high 21 points, going 8-10 from the field, and seven rebounds. This is the first time since March 6, 2020 that JHU had two players with 20 or more points.
• Thybulle added 13 points with a 5-of-8 showing from the field. Quarry and Ethan Bartlett tied with 11 rebounds as Hopkins dominated the boards, 48-22. The Blue Jays had more defensive rebounds (27) than the Bears had total. In addition, Hopkins had 16 offensive rebounds, to none for Ursinus. This is the first time in at least 20 years that the Blue Jays have held an opponent to zero offensive rebounds.
• The 99 points are the most by the Blue Jays since a 118-104 win at Rhodes on November 19, 2017.
• Hughes led five Bears in double figures with 22 points while Maurer scored 18 and Wall scored 15. Neylon finished with 13 points while Vostenak chipped in 10.
 
Up Next
• Hopkins returns to action on Wednesday, January 19 as the Blue Jays travel to Lancaster, PA to take on Franklin & Marshall. Tip-off at the Mayser Center is slated for 7:00 pm.