The men's basketball team has let five halftime leads slip away this season, including conference losses to Trinity, Conn. College and Middlebury. But on Saturday in front of the largest crowd at Cousens Gym this season, the Jumbos flipped the script, turning a four-point halftime deficit against Bates into a 66-62 win on Senior Day.
"In a lot of games this year, we've been ahead and unable to close it out," junior forward Alex Orchowski said. "But we were able [on Saturday] to come back from a bit of adversity and close out a really good win."
Tufts' offense dealt with adversity all day long, shooting 38 percent from the field — six percent below its season average — including only 3 of 17 from 3-point range. Yet a monstrous rebounding effort from Orchowski and sophomore forward Scott Anderson allowed the Jumbos second and third chances all afternoon.
The battle between two teams that both entered the game at 3-5 in the NESCAC and averaged an identical 69.8 points per game was decided in the trenches. Tufts flexed its muscles in the paint, dwarfing Bates on the glass 52-27.
The win clinches the No. 5 spot in the NESCAC Tournament for the Jumbos and a game next week at fourth-seeded Trinity, while Bates will face third-seeded Amherst in the first round.
Anderson led the Jumbos with 16 points, despite a 6-for-21 performance from the field, to go along with his 16 rebounds, including 11 offensive rebounds. "We knew that both teams wanted and were fighting for that fifth spot," he said. "Our shots weren't falling, but everyone was crashing the boards. There weren't a lot of long rebounds that led to fast breaks; it was mostly tip-ins and putbacks."
Tufts started the game sluggishly and allowed Bates to jump out to seven-point leads twice in the first half. The Bobcats made five of nine 3-pointers in the first 20 minutes and Anderson's six offensive boards might have been the only reason Tufts was able to stay as close as 32-28 at the half.
But the Jumbos ratcheted up the defensive pressure in the second half, energized by a raucous crowd of 500 that included a full-fledged student section. Bates' open long-distance shots from the first half disappeared and Tufts held Bates senior Brian Ellis — who entered the game fourth in the NESCAC with 17.7 points per game — to only nine points, though classmate Thomas Deegan led all scorers with 18 points.
"We played good team defense," freshman guard Oliver Cohen said. "[Ellis] was our main focus and we kept him in check. But [Deegan] was able to get loose a few times. We have to focus on staying with our man and not taking bad gambles. At this level, everyone's a good enough shooter to hit open shots."
Coach Bob Sheldon gave a nod to his two seniors, tri-captains Matt Galvin, a guard, and Sam Mason, a forward, by putting them in the starting lineup. Mason had seven points in 17 minutes in his final home game, while Galvin played three minutes before giving way to freshman Kwame Firempong, who played the bulk of the second half.
Two minutes into the second half, a layup by junior guard Amauris Quezada gave Tufts its first lead of the day, at 35-34. The Jumbos never relinquished that lead, though a Deegan free throw at the four-minute mark tied the game at 55-55. The game went back and forth in the final minutes, until Orchowski put home the winning basket in apt fashion — with an offensive rebound and quick put-in with 1:39 left that sent the crowd into an uproar.
"Coach said that he hadn't felt that kind of energy in Cousens in five years," Anderson said. "The reason we won this game is because of the fans. We had so many similarities [with Bates] and we really needed the support the whole game."
To keep his players fresh, Sheldon made substitutions at nearly every stoppage down the stretch. Cohen played the most minutes for the Jumbos with 29, and 10 players finished with at least 12.
Depth has been one of this team's strengths all season, after the graduation of all-time leading scorer Jon Pierce (LA '10) made the Jumbos' scoring options much less predictable. But fresh legs weren't enough to close out national No. 7 Middlebury earlier this season, after Tufts was up 13 at the half. Fresh legs weren't enough to close out Trinity last weekend to help clinch a home playoff game either, resulting in a 66-61 loss.
But on Saturday, the Jumbos' energy shined as Anderson, Orchowski, junior forward James Long and Quezada chased down loose ball after loose ball, limiting the Bobcats' second chances and extending their own offensive possessions.
The result is that the Jumbos will now head to Hartford, Conn. next Saturday for a shot at revenge against the Bantams.
