ARLINGTON, Va. – Junior Chris Hammond tallied 22 points, 18 from three-pointers alone, and senior Will Scherer made four blocks in the semifinal of the Pablo Coto Tournament this Saturday to lead the Mammoths to a 76-51 win over the University of Lynchburg.

Amherst advanced to a 4-1 record on the season while Lynchburg fell to a standing of 1-2. The Mammoths will proceed to the final of the Pablo Coto Tournament and play against the hosting Marymount University team Sunday at 2 PM.

GAME HIGHLIGHTS:
*Strong defense from both sides opened a tight first half between the Mammoths and the Hornets. Two minutes in Amherst launched into the lead following a layup from senior Bobby Sommers and a jumper from Scherer one minute later, taking Amherst up 4-0. Despite sophomore Marc Garraud adding two with a driving layup in the fifth minute, Hornet junior Jayson Easton quickly notched two threes to tie the game 6-6.

*After going down 6-8 against the Hornets in the sixth minute, the Mammoths regained the lead with a 7-0 run. In a span of a minute, two driving layups from Garraud and Hammond combined with a three-pointer from Sommers to give Amherst a 13-8 advance over the Hornets.

*Lynchburg fired back to find the equalizer with their own 7-0 run midway through the stanza. A free throw from Hornet first-year Jamarcus Brown tied the meet 20-20 with nine minutes to go.

*The Mammoths blasted back into the lead with six minutes remaining in the half thanks to a 16-2 run highlighted by a fiery performance from Hammond, who bucketed three shots from the arc in a row to add nine to Amherst's tally. Hammond closed the half having sunk a strong 13 points for the Mammoths, who went into the locker room up 39-24.

*A 7-0 run at the start of the second half threatened a comeback for the Hornets, but Sommers ended the scoring drought for the Mammoths with a layup from the paint after senior Ryker Vance blocked a Lynchburg shot and found senior guard C.J. Mitchell, who passed to an open Sommers at the free throw line.

*The rest of the stanza saw Amherst explode away from Lynchburg. Between the ninth and seventh minutes, Hammond nailed three more buckets from the arc to add another nine for the Mammoths. A driving layup from Sommers, a dunk from Scherer (his second of the night), and a three from Garraud combined to give Amherst a 65-39 lead with six minutes remaining.

*Scherer and Garraud closed for the Mammoths by adding nine more to Amherst's tally. The Hornets struggled to block the 6' 10" center's drives, notching four more points for Amherst. Garraud's well-placed shots from the arc also troubled the Lynchburg defense until the final buzzer, allowing the guard to sink one more three to finish 76-51 for the Mammoths.

BY THE NUMBERS:

*The Mammoths closed the night with 46% shooting (29-63) compared to 28.1% (18-64) from the Hornets. Amherst also held an advantage in three pointers and free throws converted, 36.7%-20.7% and 70%-64.3% respectively.

*Both Hammond and Scherer recorded double doubles to help give the Mammoths the win. Hammond finished with 22 points and 11 rebounds while Scherer notched 13 points and 11 rebounds.

*Scherer closed with a team-high 4 blocks and 4 offensive rebounds for the Mammoths.