The men's and women's basketball teams will each take the floor at Cousens Gym tonight for the final time this semester in a doubleheader extravaganza beginning at 6 p.m. The women's squad will tip off first against Regis, while the men will take on Babson in the latter half, starting at 8 p.m.
On the women's side, the Jumbos come into the contest at 2-1, having just topped Lasell in an 81-66 blowout at Cousens on Sunday. Freshman guard Marista Christoudias contributed a team-high 23 points to go along with nine steals, while sophomore center Emily Goodman, last week's NESCAC Player of the Week chipped in 22 points and eight rebounds.
Regis (1-3), fresh off its first win of the year, will attempt to hand Tufts its first loss at home of the young season. The Beacons were anything but lucky their first three outings, losing the first two games by a combined total of three points and then falling to MIT in a 78-55 rout last Thursday. But then on Saturday, everything finally clicked as the visiting Regis toppled Fitchburg in convincing fashion, 78-66. The Beacons attack is led by junior Christa Wirth, senior Laura Trimboli, and freshman Nicole Healy.
The Tufts men's team is looking to extend its two-game winning streak against Babson, a team that it beat to the tune of 60-50 last year in Waltham. The Jumbos have looked strong in both of their match-ups since Salem State dealt them an 84-70 setback in the season opener last Monday. Springfield was Tufts' most recent victim, as coach Bob Sheldon's team led from the start en route to a 91-66 victory on Saturday night. The squad was again on fire from three-point land, draining 41.7% of its attempts. As a team, the Jumbos have shot 34.7 percent from downtown to date.
Babson currently sports a 3-2 record, having also suffered defeat against powerful Salem State. The Beavers came up short against the Vikings on Saturday, 83-71, which also halted Babson's two game win streak. The visitors will look to a trio of scorers: junior forward Brian McCarthy, sophomore guard Joe Colleli, and freshman guard Jeff Hines, to avenge last season's loss to the Jumbos.
