AMHERST, Mass. – The Amherst College men's basketball team rallied from an 11-point deficit and closed the game on an 18-2 run to capture a 63-58 win over Bates College in NESCAC action on Friday night at LeFrak Gymnasium. Senior captain Grant Robinson tallied 23 points and 4 assists to lead the Mammoths.
The Mammoths (10-3, 2-1 NESCAC) picked up their 13th straight win against the Bobcats (5-5, 0-2 NESCAC), a streak that dates back to 2011. Amherst is back in action Saturday (Jan. 15), hosting Tufts for a NESCAC tilt at 3 p.m.
GAME HIGHLIGHTS
- The Bobcats opened the game with the first two baskets for a 4-0 lead but the Mammoths came back to take a 12-8 lead on a three from first-year guard Canin Reynolds.
- The Bobcats answered with a 9-0 run to take a five-point lead and stayed on top for the rest of the first, going into halftime with a 27-23 lead.
- Bates junior captain Stephon Baxter scored seven unanswered points for the Bobcats to open the second half and boost Bates to an 11-point lead.
- The Bates lead was at 11 once again with seven minutes to go and the Mammoths took over from there. Robinson contributed half the points in a 10-0 run that brought the Mammoths back within one. After a Baxter free throw, Robinson scored again to tie the game at 57-57. On the next possession, Robinson was fouled and hit both free throws to give the Mammoths their first lead of the second half with just under two minutes to play.
- The Amherst defense held the Bobcats to only a single free throw in the final two minutes and the Mammoths hit 4-of-6 free throws down the stretch to secure the come-from-behind victory.
BY THE NUMBERS
- The Bobcats were held without a field goal for the final seven minutes of the game as the Mammoths closed the game on an 18-2 run.
- Senior captain Garrett Day scored 11 points and sophomore forward Dan Schlakman added 10 points to join Robinson in double figures.
- Junior center Michael Schretter and first-year forward Noah Helmke each grabbed eight rebounds as the Mammoths held a 47-36 advantage on the boards.
- The Bobcats held a slight edge in shooting, going 35 percent (22-of-63) from the field while the Mammoths shot 34 percent (20-of-59). Amherst was slightly better from beyond the arc. Both sides took 25 three-point shots but Amherst made 7 while Bates hit 5.
- Baxter scored 25 points to lead the Bobcats. First-year Jahmir Primer added 12 points and junior center Omar Sarr tallied 14 rebounds.