Box Score SWARTHMORE, Pa. – Senior
Karl Barkley scored 13 points and drained four 3-pointers in his final home game to help lead the Swarthmore men's basketball team to a 69-68 victory over McDaniel on Saturday, Feb. 14 at Tarble Pavilion.
In a game that featured 17 lead changes and five ties, Swarthmore found itself ahead 67-65 with 35 seconds left and needing a big defensive stop. Phillip Perry charged down the right side in an attempt to net the equalizer, but his shot was batted away out of bounds by freshman
Robbie Walsh for his team-leading 27th block of the season.
On the ensuing play, Andrew Merlo missed a 3-pointer and freshman
Zack Yonda came up with a monster rebound through traffic before earning a trip to the free throw line with five seconds left. After Yonda made both shots to give the Garnet a 69-65 cushion, McDaniel did not go away quietly and got a 3-pointer at the top of the key from Tim Stewart to move within one with 0.4 seconds on the clock. Swarthmore, however, got the ball back in the play and held on for the win.
McDaniel raced out to an 8-1 lead before the teams exchanged 13 leads in the opening half. Barkley, who was recognized prior to the contest, gave the Garnet their first lead by drilling a trey to make it 9-8 at the 13:19 mark. Swarthmore later used a streak of scoring seven unanswered in the waning minutes and would take a 36-31 advantage into the break.
The Garnet, who canned eight 3-pointers in the first half, continued using the long ball to make big plays through much of the second. Sophomore
Shane Loeffler set up
Karl Barkley for a trifecta at the 14:26 mark to give the hosts the lead for good at 45-43 before nailing one from downtown himself on the very next play. Loeffler then found Barkley for another 3-pointer and the third time in the second half to put Swarthmore ahead 59-55 at the 6:14 mark. Brennan then converted an old-fashioned 3-point play to create a 65-58 score with 3:33 before the Garnet eventually survived and escaped with a one-point win.
Brennan scored a career-high 19 points in the winning effort for Swarthmore, which has won four of its past five games at Tarble Pavilion. Barkley finished with 13 by netting all of his field goals from downtown, while Bourne finished with 12 points and nine boards. Loeffler matched a career high with five assists.
McDaniel (14-9, CC 9-7) was once again led by Stewart, who netted a game-high 25 points on 12-for-18 shooting from the field. Merlo contributed 12 points and three assists to go along with two steals.
Swarthmore (10-13, CC 6-10), which has won two games in a row, visits Washington College on Wednesday, Feb. 18 at 8 p.m.
