The Tufts men's basketball team simply cannot catch a break.
After picking up the pieces from two losses over the weekend, one of which came at the end of four overtime periods and the other on a buzzer−beating three−pointer, the Jumbos headed home to face non−conference foe UMass Dartmouth, only to have their hearts broken once again.
Leading by one, Corsairs senior tri−captain and forward Brandon Shelton missed a jumper after a Tufts turnover. But sophomore guard Alex Klepadlo elevated for the offensive rebound to the left of the rim and tossed it back into the basket as he was falling to the ground. The second−chance points put the visitors up 67−66 with five seconds left in regulation. That score became final when the potential game−winner from senior forward Dave Beyel was waved off by the officials, who made the call that the shot was released after the buzzer, much to the chagrin of the Jumbos' bench.
Unfortunately for senior tri−captain and reigning NESCAC Co−Player of the Week Jon Pierce, the loss made it hard to celebrate a record−breaking night. On a free throw with 6:34 left in the second half, Pierce became the program's all−time leading scorer with his 1,786th career point, surpassing Greg Davis' (LA '86) mark of 1,785, set between 1982 and 1986. Pierce would go on to score one more point in the game for a game−high 24 to set the current mark at 1,787.
"To be honest, it really hasn't hit me yet, considering how we lost the game," Pierce said of his accomplishment. "But it's an honor, and it's a testament to the hard work that my team has put in, that I've put in and sacrifices that other people have made so that I had the opportunity to take the shots that I do. It's such a team effort and a personal honor that I take quite seriously. It just hasn't quite set in yet."
Considering how they lost the game — and the two before it — it will certainly take some time for elation to set in for Pierce. With six minutes on the clock, Tufts was up by eight points, only to watch Shelton score 11 of UMass Dartmouth's final points to help the Corsairs win.
The Jumbos had been down 31−30 going into the half, but came out of the locker room firing and went on a 12−7 run. The Corsairs answered back, but an 11−2 stretch gave Tufts a comfortable 58−50 advantage with 6:34 left.
But it might have been too much breathing room, as the Jumbos' defense became relaxed, allowing UMass Dartmouth to respond with 12 of the next 16 points to tie the game at 62 all. A jumper and pair of free throws from Jumbo senior tri−captain Dan Cook regained a three−point lead with under two minutes to go, but a foul on the other end of the court let Corsairs sophomore center Lance Greene pull his team within one, setting the stage for the tight finish.
Pierce ended with game−highs of 24 points and 14 rebounds, while freshman forward Scott Anderson added 16 points and eight rebounds as well. Beyel, the team's second−leading scorer this season, was effectively silenced on the night with only six points.
"It may seem like bad luck," junior forward Sam Mason said. "But to an extent bad luck is a reflection of how you're playing, decisions that you make throughout the course of the game. Coach [Bob Sheldon] says, ‘Every play matters,' and it seems like if we made a couple plays here and there it wouldn't come down to the last shot."
One more time, the team will have to put itself back together to prepare for its do−or−die weekend starting tomorrow. Friday night, the Jumbos will host Trinity, a team that sits in sixth place in the NESCAC at 9−10 overall and 2−3 in the conference. It is a must−win situation, vital to keeping the Jumbos' playoff hopes alive, and with quick emotional and physical recoveries from Tufts, the playoffs are a very reachable goal.
"We made some mistakes in the first half [Tuesday night]," Mason said. "But we can live with mistakes as long as we're playing hard; and even though our record is disappointing, this weekend is important conference play, and we just want to come out and play hard. We probably won't be going too hard in practice since we've had so many games in so few days. Just short, crisp, focused practices and this weekend — we'll be ready to play."
On Saturday, Tufts will face Amherst, which sits in fourth place in the conference and lost last weekend by one to the Bowdoin squad Tufts bested for its lone NESCAC win.
"It's going to be tough," Pierce said of the task ahead. "We just have to come in here and refocus during the next two days of practice and as tough as it is, try to put these few games behind us. That's what's the blessing and the curse of basketball: that you usually play again pretty soon after these type of deals.
"We've had three tough losses, but we just have to come out and we have to make one more play," he continued. "That's how we have to look at it. We have to treat every play like it's important. Because in the past three games we've seen that each play can have a huge effect on the outcome of the game."
