Columns

The Intangibles: Luka Dončić and the murky world of foul-baiting

By Jonah Cowan | January 22

Luka Dončić is the master of the most abominable art form in the game of basketball. He worms his way into the mid-range, tricks his defender into jumping into his shot fake, jumps upwards into them, hears the ref’s whistle, hangs in the air and, on the descent, drains the shot for an ‘and-one.’

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Basketball

Women’s basketball defeats Rhode Island College at home, 62–50

By Sabrina Dorr | December 3

Coming into Sunday’s game with the memory of their recent nail-biting 74–77 overtime loss to Endicott College, Tufts women’s basketball held a record of 3–3, while Rhode Island College entered with a 5–1 standing.

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Columns

The Full Court Press: Kevin Durant is a trumpeter, Miles Davis is a small forward

By Noah Goldstein | November 25

Making an appearance on the “Hot Ones” YouTube series back in October 2024, Jaylen Brown elucidated one of the best insights on the game of basketball I’ve ever heard. “I look at basketball as like poetry in motion, which is music, and everybody is playing their own song,” Brown commented to host Sean Evans. “Everybody samples from different artists, and they’re playing their own song and if you wanna stop them you gotta study their rhythm.”

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Columns

The Intangibles: Selling the Integrity of the Sport

By Jonah Cowan | November 21

In 2014, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver advocated for the legalization of sports betting in a New York Times op-ed. His main argument was one similar to one made for cannabis legalization: “Sports betting should be brought out of the underground and into the sunlight where it can be appropriately monitored and regulated.” In that same op-ed, Silver stated, “one of my biggest responsibilities [as commissioner] is to protect the integrity of professional basketball.” It is clear Silver views his role as juggling the ideals of maximum profit and total sporting integrity.  

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Basketball

Accountability: The driving force behind Tufts men’s basketball

By Ben Lable | November 13

As the Tufts men’s basketball team gears up to tip off its season on Friday at Babson, they are driven by experience, hunger and a shared commitment to accountability. Building off of last year’s success, the Jumbos have a great advantage with all five starters returning.

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Basketball

Celtics open season tonight against 76ers

By Ben Lable | October 22

The wait is nearly over for Boston Celtics fans. At 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday, the season will officially tip off as Atlantic Division rivals, the Philadelphia 76ers, visit TD Garden.

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Columns

Moments ‘til Madness: What to make of the preseason Top 25

By Owen Short | October 16

With about three weeks to go until the opening tip of the college hoops season, we finally have the first official Associated Press Poll of the 2025–26 season. Most of the names and general rankings aren’t very surprising, given all the time spent analyzing these now mostly finalized rosters, but ...

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Columns

Moments ‘til Madness: The pecking order of the Power 5

By Owen Short | October 2

Just like everything else in college basketball, the pecking order of the top conferences seems to shuffle from year to year. With the constant churn of the transfer portal and a fresh round of coaching changes, this feels like the right moment to take stock of the Power 5. The goal: to predict which leagues are poised for the most success, whether by racking up tournament bids, producing true championship contenders or simply standing out in overall competitiveness.

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Columns

Moments ‘til Madness: What’s Shaping the Season Ahead

By Owen Short | September 24

The first tip-off of the 2025–26 college basketball season comes on Nov. 3. With just under six weeks left, the excitement leading up to opening day is starting to build up. Still, we don’t have official preseason rankings, schedules are being finalized and, apparently, the coaching carousel is still taking its course. While we wait for the actual basketball to start, these are the offseason storylines I found to be interesting and also important for this year of college hoops.

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Basketball

‘All gas, no brakes:’ Sofia Gonzalez leaves it on the Cousens floor

By Riley Daniel | May 15

When someone’s career profile reads off with top 20 spots in program history in 3-pointers made and points scored, two All-NESCAC seasons and two third team D3hoops.com All-Region 1 acknowledgements, one expects to hear about a journey that was as smooth as the drive down Route 66. Yet, for graduating senior Sofia Gonzalez, this road was windy and unpredictable, but it still left her with everything she could have wanted from her collegiate experience.

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Columns

Full Court Press: In praise of losers

By Noah Goldstein | April 4

Sixty-eight teams made it to March Madness this year. After the championship game on Monday, there will only be one left standing. That team will not be Tom Izzo’s Michigan State Spartans, and maybe that’s okay.

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Basketball

The Intangibles: The visceral experience of rivalry

By Jonah Cowan | March 25

On the eve of the Lakers-Celtics game, I decided to go to TD Garden even though I had no tickets. I wore a yellow Lakers beanie and an army jacket with a private’s patch long since removed. As tip off approached, I decided to interact with some fans outside the arena, as I resisted intrusive thoughts to sneak into the game and watch. I wanted to experience the famed rivalry firsthand through the crowd — to witness the best rivalry in basketball.

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Basketball

Men’s basketball’s season ends in head-to-head clash at NCAA tournament

By Jack Chapleski | March 14

Tufts men’s basketball entered the NCAA Men's Division III Basketball Championship on Friday, facing Yeshiva University. After a quick basket made by Yeshiva, Tufts wasted no time in creating a substantial lead to work with. There was no catching them, and by the end of the game, the score was 83–66, moving the Jumbos into the second round of the tournament.

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Basketball

Women’s Basketball sees their season end in NCAA tournament

By Leanna DeSousa | March 11

It is not everyday that you see a 10-loss team in the NCAA tournament, but Tufts women’s basketball squeezed their way in with an at-large bid with a 15–10 overall record. After falling to Trinity College in double overtime in the NESCAC tournament, Tufts had almost two weeks to prepare for their share of March madness.

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Basketball

With early NESCAC tournament exit, men’s basketball looks to make noise in March

By Luke Fredericks | March 6

Basketball, at its best, is about momentum. Build it, ride it, hold onto it for as long as possible. Lose it, and things unravel quickly. The Tufts men’s basketball team saw both ends of that equation in the NESCAC tournament. A strong second-half surge carried them past Williams in the quarterfinals, but against Trinity in the semifinals, they lost their grip. A dismal 32.8% shooting performance doomed the Jumbos in a 74–51 loss, cutting short their bid for a conference title. But the season isn’t over — far from it. The Jumbos are still dancing with the NCAA Division III Men’s Basketball Championship up next.

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Basketball

Women's basketball's NESCAC tournament run cut short in double overtime

By Leanna DeSousa | February 26

On Saturday, the Tufts women’s basketball team — seeded sixth in the conference — kicked off their post season play by traveling to Hartford, CT to take on No. 3 seed Trinity College. Three weeks ago, the Jumbos played their last home game against the Bantams, earning a 68–59 victory on their senior day. The team was looking to achieve a similar result in the quarterfinal game. However, despite the team’s intense tenacity, Tufts fell short.

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Basketball

Watt powers Jumbos to NESCAC semifinals

By Riley Daniel | February 25

With ten minutes left in their quarterfinal against Williams College, there was a question of which Jumbo would step up in crunch time. Would it be Scott Gyimesi, the junior who had already recorded 13 double-doubles during the season and 34 in less than three seasons? Perhaps it would be junior James Morakis, currently averaging over 17 points? Shockingly, it was an electric shooting performance sparked by the whiteout crowd from sophomore Zion Watt, who posted a career-high of 15 points, making four threes in the span of five minutes, sending the Jumbos on to an 80–70 win and earning them a trip to next weekend’s NESCAC semifinals at Wesleyan University.

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Columns

The Intangibles: On Victor Wembanyama’s health

By Jonah Cowan | February 24

We know that Victor Wembanyama will be one of the greatest basketball players of all time — if he stays healthy. This is the statement that defines his career. Now, Wembanyama is out for the rest of the season with a deep vein thrombosis and a blood clot in his shoulder which, according to Dr. Brian Sutterer, “could have traveled to his lungs and killed him.”

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Basketball

Men’s basketball stumbles in NESCAC showdowns

By Luke Fredericks | February 5

The Tufts men’s basketball team faced its toughest weekend of the season, dropping two hard-fought road matchups against top-ranked Wesleyan University and No. 16 Trinity College. A heartbreaking 69–66 loss at Wesleyan on Friday was followed by an 81–45 defeat at Trinity on Saturday. The Jumbos now sit at 17–4 overall and 5–2 in NESCAC play as they look to rebound from their first back-to-back losses of the season.

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Basketball

Women’s basketball charges up through the NESCAC standings over the weekend

By Jack Chapleski | February 4

Tufts women’s basketball faced Wesleyan University on Friday for their sixth in-conference matchup of the season.

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