Courtesy of Babson sports information
BABSON PARK, MA – The ninth-ranked Amherst College men's basketball team overcame a 14-point deficit in the second half but could not complete the comeback, ultimately falling to Babson College by a score of 65-59 Monday evening at Staake Gymnasium. The Lord Jeffs fall to 8-3 with their second loss in three days, while the Beavers improve to 6-7 with the upset.
Monday marked only the second time since the 2002-03 season Amherst dropped back-to-back regular season games. The Jeffs, who will host Wesleyan University and Connecticut College this weekend in a pair of NESCAC games, have not lost three consecutive regular season contests since the 1998-99 season.
First-year Allen Williamson (Saugus, MA) provided a spark for Amherst with three timely dunks and career highs in points (17) and steals (3), but the Lord Jeffs shot just 35.6 percent from the floor and were 1-of-11 from beyond the arc. Amherst continued to struggle with free throws, knocking down only 16 of 26 attempts (61.5 percent) from the line.
Both teams were without their starting point guards in the contest, as Amherst junior Conor Meehan (Meriden, CT) and Babson first-year Marcus McDermott both sat out with injuries. Meehan is Amherst's second-leading scorer and leader in assists and steals, while McDermott leads the Beavers in scoring and assists.
Helping to fill the scoring void for Babson were sophomore Marcus Edwards and first-year Russell Braithwaite, who netted 13 points apiece. Edwards shot 6-for-10 from the field, while Braithwaite hit 6-of-12 while also grabbing six rebounds. First-year Alex Rudolph chipped in with nine points for the Beavers, sophomore Kris Noonan added a game-high 10 boards, and sophomore Matt Florio contributed six points, three assists and two steals.
Picking up the slack for the Lord Jeffs was its deep bench, which scored 51 points in the contest. In addition to Williamson's strong performance, sophomore Jeff Holmes (Saunderstown, RI) had 15 points and six rebounds. First-year Willy Workman (Northampton, MA) totaled 11 points, seven boards, three assists and three steals, while first-year Peter Kaasila (Plaistow, NH) finished with six points and a career-high four blocks. However, Amherst received just eight total points from its starting unit, which was held to 2-for-23 shooting in the contest.
Babson led for the entire first half, going up by as many as 14 on two occasions before taking a 36-26 advantage into the break. Edwards had nine points in the first period for the Beavers, while Braithwaite and Rudolph each tossed in seven. Workman was the high man with seven in the opening 20 minutes for Amherst, while Kaasila added six.
Still trailing by double figures at 44-31 with 15:11 remaining the second stanza, the Lord Jeffs clawed their way back into the contest with a 10-0 run over the next five minutes. Holmes got the offense going with six straight points, with two free throws by Workman and a lay-up by sophomore Taylor Barrise (Allendale, NJ) cutting the visitors' deficit to three, 44-41, with 10:34 to go.
Babson eventually stretched its lead back to seven twice later in the period, including a 50-43 margin following an Edwards foul-line jumper at the eight-minute mark. However, Amherst came storming back with a 9-0 run that was punctuated by back-to-back dunks by Williamson, the second of which turned into a three-point play that gave the Lord Jeffs their first lead of the game, 52-50, with 4:55 remaining.
The teams would trade baskets over the next two minutes, with Amherst still leading by two, 57-55, after a Barrise free throw with 2:57 remaining. Babson then caught a huge break when junior captain Eric White drew a foul on a three-point attempt from the left wing, and the Babson guard took advantage by knocking down all three freebies to put his team back in front, 58-57, with 2:29 on the clock.
The Beavers added to their lead with 1:49 left, as Rudolph hit a nice driving lay-up from the left side to make it a 60-57 contest. Following an Amherst miss, junior captain Matt Zoia then hit the biggest shot of the game for Babson, as he converted a close-range jumper after a beautiful spin move in the lane with the shot clock winding down to put the hosts in front, 62-57, with under a minute to play. Zoia later hit one of two free throws to push the Beavers' lead to six with 38 seconds left, and after Williamson scored on a put-back to make it a four-point game, Florio sank a pair of free throws with 20 ticks remaining to finish off Babson's 65-59 win.
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