BETHLEHEM, Pa. – Despite three players reaching double figures in the scoring column and another coming up just one point shy of that mark, the Haverford College men's basketball team was downed by Moravian, 88-58, on the road Wednesday evening.
Joe Scibelli led a balanced Haverford offense with 12 points and eight rebounds during the non-conference tilt. Kahlil Garnes and Walt Plumlee each chipped in 11 points on the evening, while Matt Sherman scored nine points for his side. That offense was not enough to overcome four Greyhounds that scored in double figures, led by a huge 28 point game from Brandon McGuire.
Early knock downs from Sherman and Plumlee kept the Fords within striking distance throughout the first half. A pair of three-pointers from two of the team's most prolific scorers made the score 10-8 after Moravian got off to a 5-0 jump.
Henry Stevens also got into the act early as his first shot of the game was true to make it a one possession game at 14-12. Plumlee later answered a Greyhounds' basket with a layup of his own to set the score at 16-14.
The Fords continued to find success in the paint early and often in Wednesday's road contest as Garnes converted an old fashioned three-point play with his work in the paint. Scibelli and Sherman also hit back-to-back layups and made the score just a four point difference with 8:33 to play in the first half. Haverford's work down in the post helped the team to 34 points in the paint during the evening.
However, a span of five-plus minutes without a basket from the field allowed Moravian to grow its lead to nine points. The Greyhounds closed the half with a 40-30 advantage on the scoreboard as they hit a three-pointer with time running down to turn what could have been a five point deficit facing Haverford – had the layup on the offensive end gone – into a double digit advantage for the home team.
Moravian finished the game by continuing to shoot over 50 percent from the field to close the contest. The Greyhounds also poured in 24 points off of turnovers with the help of 14 steals to help them come away with the home victory.
Men's basketball will now close out the fall semester schedule inside the Gooding '84 Arena this Saturday with a contest against Summit (Pa.). Formerly known as Baptist Bible, these two teams have met just once in program history during the 1989 season. Saturday's game is scheduled for a 3 p.m. tip.