Box Score
It seemed a foregone conclusion that senior guard Malique Killing was about to tie Muhlenberg school record for points scored.
An 85 percent free-throw shooter, Killing was fouled by a visiting Ursinus player and went to the line for a 1-and-1 with 3:10 remaining in the first half and two points shy of Bob McClure's 44-year-old record of 1,788 career points. Unsurprisingly, Killing made the first but missed the second to remain one point short.
While that miss was shocking at the time, it made what happened next that much sweeter. On the Mules' next possession, Killing sized up the Ursinus zone D, faked a pass to his right, then pulled up and drilled a three-pointer, giving him 1,790 career points, tops for any Muhlenberg men's player.
The cherry on top? A 64-61 Muhlenberg victory over the Bears that saw Killing finish with a game-high 20 points and freshman Nick Rindock reject a game-tying three from Ursinus as the horn blew.
Most players capable of putting up the numbers Killing has entering their college career would have a number like 1,788 posted on their bulletin board. It wasn't like that for No. 5.
"I had zero goals coming in my freshman year, it all just sort of came at once. In high school I scored 800 points in four years and here I scored 1,000 in two. None of what I have done has been expected, and this is not something I ever could have imagined happening," Killing said.
Against Ursinus, Killing needed 13 to break the record. He came out hot, hitting his first five shots from the field to help the Mules (8-8, 3-6) to an early lead.
After Killing's record-breaker, Brandon LaRose made a layup to put the Mules up by 13. Ursinus (5-11, 2-7) would slowly chip away at the lead and briefly take it back by one with 8:05 to play. A long triple by Jon Schreer (pictured left) - one of his four - gave the Mules back the lead at 55-53, and they would hold it the rest of the game.
Rindock again had a highly efficient, highly active game, scoring 17 points on nine shots and grabbing eight rebounds. The Mules had four fouls to give with 10 seconds left, and used as many as they could before Rindock rejected the last-gasp heave at the buzzer to seal the win.
"Before Rindock got here, he was like the god of Allentown. I was pretty much expecting him to break out eventually with all the hype coming into the season, and he has," Killing said of his freshman teammate.
The win snapped a three-game skid, and with the record out of the way, Killing and the Mules can focus on building off the win for the rest of 2015.
"This was really big for our confidence," said Killing. "At this point you don't pay attention to wins and losses and the playoff picture, it all about executing as well as you can. Today, I thought we executed pretty well for the majority of the game. For the most part, I think we are doing the right things, and that's bigger than the win itself. I legitimately felt today we executed on all cylinders."
