WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. – Despite a career-high 21-point showing from first-year Elias Chin on Wednesday night, Williams College managed to hold off the Amherst College men's basketball team 69-65 in an energetic overtime clash.

Amherst dropped to 10-7 on the season and 1-2 in the NESCAC. Williams improved to 11-6 and 1-3 in the conference. The Mammoths will travel to Hamilton College on Saturday to face the Continentals at Margaret Bundy Scott Field House at 3 p.m.

GAME HIGHLIGHTS:

*The first half was a back-and-forth rally as both teams fought for an early lead. After the Ephs went up 5-0 in the first five minutes, sophomore Marc Garraud netted a jumper, and junior Chris Hammond scored a layup to make it a one-point game at 4-5 with 14:08 to play.

*With 12:34 remaining in the stanza, senior Noah Helmke fed the ball to Hammond at the wing, who drove forward and into the paint to score on a layup and give the Mammoths their first lead of the night at 9-8.

*Both teams tied at 15-15 after Chin converted two free throws with 6:41 remaining. A 7-0 run from Williams in the following three minutes pushed the Ephs past Amherst to 21-15.

*Amherst's deficit grew to 8 points as the half closed with Williams senior Evan Glatzer nailing a buzzer-beater from behind the arc, ending the period down 22-30 for the Mammoths.

*The Mammoths entered the second half with a hot-shooting 8-3 run in the first 90 seconds. Senior C.J. Mitchell tallied four points with two jumpers, while Chin and senior Will Scherer each added two points with a layup from the paint.

*The Ephs fired back with a 12-2 run of their own in the next six minutes, leading 45-32 with 12:23 to play. Mitchell quickly responded with a three-pointer fed by senior Bobby Sommers to shorten the deficit, but Ephs senior Noah Dinkins kept the Mammoths at bay with a three-pointer of his own.

*Amherst exploded into action as the final ten minutes ticked away, blasting off on a 15-2 run between 8:46 and 3:19, highlighted by a three-pointer from junior Drew Martin and two jumpers from Chin. The momentum brought Amherst within two points of Williams as the final three minutes neared.

*Chin and Garraud partnered up to take the game into overtime as they each bucketed a layup in the final two minutes to tie the game 55-55. Chin went into overtime with a game-high 17 points and 2 steals.  

*Despite a breakaway rally from Williams at the start of overtime giving the Ephs a 60-55 lead over Amherst, the Mammoths fought back as Sommers converted two free throws and Chin added a layup to make it a one-point game with 1:53 to play.
*Down 67-63 as free throws gave Williams a four-point lead, Chin sped pole to pole and drove into the paint for a layup to get Amherst within two points of the Ephs. Two final free throws from Williams ended the battle 69-65.

BY THE NUMBERS:

*Amherst held an advantage in field goals and free throws, netting 39.4% (26-66) of field goals compared to 38.2% (21-55) from Williams, and 69.2% of free throws compared to 65.4% from the Ephs. Williams converted more three-pointers, 35.7% to 16.7%.

*Chin led as the game's top scorer with 21 points. The first year also led on the Amherst bench with 2 assists and 2 steals. Sommers won a game-high of 9 rebounds.