November 5, 2021
Moravian Falls at Muhlenberg in 2021-22 Season Opener
ALLENTOWN, Pa. --- The Moravian University men’s basketball squad fell to host and rival Muhlenberg College, 94-71, in non-conference action Friday evening to open the 2021-22 season.
Moravian University
0-1
71
Muhlenberg College
1-0
94
| Final | 1 | 2 | T |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
35 | 36 | 71 |
|
|
42 | 52 | 94 |
Team Stats
Game Leaders
Muhlenberg College
Pts:
Dan Gaines
- 24
Reb:
Dan Gaines
- 9
Ast:
Dan Gaines
- 6
Team Stats
| Game Statistics | Moravian University | Muhlenberg College |
|---|---|---|
| Field Goals | (30-72) | (37-66) |
| Field Goal % | 41.7% | 56.1% |
| Rebounds | 34 | 35 |
| Assists | 15 | 22 |
| Turnovers | 20 | 17 |
| Pts off Turnovers | 9 | 28 |
| 2nd Chance Pts | 18 | 6 |
| Pts in the Paint | 30 | 44 |
| Fastbreak Pts | 0 | 0 |
| Bench Pts | 19 | 25 |
ALLENTOWN, Pa. --- The Moravian University men's basketball squad fell to host and rival Muhlenberg College, 94-71, in non-conference action Friday evening to open the 2021-22 season.
How It Happened
- The Mules scored the opening points on a three-pointer before junior guard Nate Dougherty scored the first points of the season for the Hounds. Muhlenberg moved out to an 8-2 edge before sophomore forward Mike DiPietro cut it to a one-point contest at 8-7. The Mules pulled out to a 17-9 advantage just over five minutes into action, and Muhlenberg led 22-14 when the Blue and Grey went on an 8-0 run to knot the score at 22-22 on a lay-up from DiPietro with eight minutes before the intermission
- Muhlenberg countered with an 8-0 run of its own to go back on top, 30-22, with 6:40 left in the first half. Moravian answered once again and eventually took a 33-32 lead on a jumper by sophomore forward Thomas Abato with 2:28 to go. However, the Mules would end the half with a 10-2 run to head to the locker room leading the Greyhounds 42-35
- The Mules began the second half with a 15-4 run over the first seven minutes of action and would lead by as many as 30 points during the final ten minutes of action
Firsts for the Hounds
- Mike Frew '02 was the Head Coach in a collegiate game for the first time. Frew was a high school head coach for eight years in his career before being named as the Greyhounds Interim Head Coach for 2021-22
- Senior guard Danny Cooper, freshman forward Nate Santiago, freshman guard/forward Michael Leonardo and Abato made their debuts in a Moravian uniform, and Cooper and Santiago made their first collegiate starts
Inside the Numbers
- Moravian has a trio of players in double figures led DiPietro, who netted a career-high 18 points. Cooper tossed in 15 points while Dougherty contributed 10 points
- DiPierto and Cooper both reached double digits for the first time in their careers. DiPietro also grabbed a team-high seven rebounds to go with a pair of blocked shots while Cooper added five rebounds, three steals and a pair of assists
- Dougherty hit double digits for the third time as a Greyhound, and he contributed six rebounds
- Abato recorded nine points for Moravian while sophomore guard/forward James Thompson had eight points and three assists
- Sophomore guard Alex Dietz added seven points, three rebounds and two assists while Santiago and Leonardo both had two points with Santiago contributing four assists and two boards
- Moravian shot 42.3 percent (30-for-71) in the game but couldn't overcome the Mules shooting as the host went 37-for-66 (56.1 percent) with 11 three-pointers
Up Next for the Greyhounds
- Monday, November 8 vs. Penn State Brandywine, 7:00 p.m.
- Tuesday, November 16 vs. Delaware Valley University, 7:00 p.m.
