Hope Outlasts Ursinus, Claims Third

Outside Shooting, Scoring Runs Dictate Pace

March 22, 2008

 

SALEM, Va. --- Marcus Vanderheide led three Hope College players above the 20-point plateau with a game-high 24 points as the Flying Dutchmen made amends for Friday’s loss with a 100-86 win over Ursinus College to claim third place in the NCAA Division III men’s basketball championship series.  Hope caps its season with a 28-4 record while the fourth place Bears end their season with a 29-4 record.

 

“We had two great halves,” explained Hope head coach Glenn Van Wieren.  “Our team was very emotional today.  I’m so happy for them, the seniors, the last game of their collegiate career ended in a win.  These guys are friends for life because they have respect for each other, the joy and fun they have together.”

 

Vanderheide scored 15 of his 24 points in the first half as Hope commanded as much as a 15-point advantage in the first half. 

 

Long-distance shooting was the weapon of choice for both squads throughout the game.  Hope’s Derek VanSolkema knocked down 6-of-10 from beyond the arc as the Flying Dutchmen connected on 11-of-24 three-pointers.  John Noonan, who shot 9-of-11 from the field in the first frame, made six of his seven tries from deep to lead Ursinus with a game-best tying 24 points.

 

“Coming into today’s game we were very disappointed in the outcome of yesterday’s game,” explained Hope’s Tyler Wolfe.  “We were all disappointed, we all felt bad.  We just wanted to work hard today and play Hope Basketball.”

 

Ursinus opened up an early 8-4 lead and maintained a two-point edge through the first five minutes of the half.  Hope responded with a 16-2 run over the next five minutes to move out to a 26-14 lead with 10:30 to go in the half.

 

Vanderheide and VanSolkema kept the pedal down as the Flying Dutchmen moved out to a 15-point lead with 3:40 to play in the half.  Ursinus mounted a run of its own, outscoring Hope 11-0 over the next 2:25 to pull to within four at 46-42 with 1:15 to go.  Hope managed a few extra buckets to stretch its lead to 50-42 going into the half.

 

Hope opened the second half with a 26-12 run to move out to a 76-54 advantage with 12:41 to play.  Ursinus again caught itself and slowly worked back to within 12 points on several occasions including with 3:46 to play, but the Bears couldn’t draw any closer with both teams shooting 50-percent from the field in the latter frame.

 

Vanderheide added eight rebounds and five assists to his 24-point effort.  VanSolkema finished with 22 points and eight helpers, and Tyler Wolfe added another 22-point marker accompanied by eight rebounds.  Jesse Reimink dropped in 18 points to go with seven rebounds, five assists and three steals.

 

Noonan added seven boards and two steals to his 24-point outing.  Matt Howell notched 13 points and six rebounds.  Remy Cousart, Sean Butkus and Eric Burnett each tallied 10 points for Ursinus.  Cousart recorded a double-double, adding a game-high 10 caroms.

 

“Hats off to a really outstanding Hope team,” said Ursinus head coach Kevin Small.  “I thought they were very terrific on the floor.  I’m proud about the way our kids battled here.”