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WILLIAMSTOWN, MA--The Ephs (11-5) repaid the Tufts Jumbos (7-7)
for a 25 point loss in Medford last year by whipping up a home
blowout of their own, 96-59. Williams shot the lights out
right from the start, and finished the game with a sizzling 59%
from the field.
A familiar face and two relatively less so dominated an
incendiary offensive performance for the Ephs in the first
half. Eph second-leading scorer Blake Schultz (Atherton, CA)
poured in 20 points in the first half alone on 7 of 9 from the
floor and 4 of 5 from the free throw line. Schultz also made
two-of-two from long-range, but the athletic swingman scored the
majority of his points on a variety of slashing plays to the basket
and displayed a deft touch in utilizing the backboard.
Helping provide offense early on in the contest was junior guard
Alex Rubin (Chevy Chase, MD) who came off the bench to hit three
threes in the early goings, one of which capped a 10-3 Williams run
to put the Ephs up 23-14 with 9:37 left in the half.
Far more surprising than Rubin's, though, was the performance of
freshman guard James Wang (Sydney, Australia). The six-foot
Aussie scored a whopping 18 points in the first half alone.
Despite averaging just 6.3 minutes a game and 2.8 ppg heading
into the contest, Wang went off in the first half. He scored
16 of the Ephs last 27 points and assisted on two more, finishing
the first twenty minutes a perfect 6 for 6 from the floor
(including 2 three-pointers) and 4 of 4 from the free throw
line. He also registered a team-high 3 assists in the first
half and had a steal.
Said Eph coach Mike Maker, "James brings our team much-needed
quickness in the backcourt, toughness, and moxy - he's a very
confident young man and he's very well liked by his
teammates. He's making great strides and earning valuable
minutes."
Williams shot an absurd 72% from the field in the first half and
made a divine 7 for 7 from behind the arc. Despite shooting a
little over 40% in the first half, the Jumbos were essentially
blown out of the water by an Eph offense that could do no
wrong. Williams closed the first half on a 27-12 run and took
a comfortable 21 point lead into the locker room.
Given the prowess of the Williams reserves in the first half,
Williams leading-scorer and co-captain Kevin Snyder (Littleton, CO)
didn't attempt a shot until his driving lay-in at the end of the
half gave Williams a 54-33 lead heading into the second half.
Snyder made up for it in the second half, hitting two threes early
in helping Williams to extend their lead. Snyder finished the
game with 14 points on 4 of 6 shooting.
Snyder's second-half resurgence served as a symbol of the Ephs
intentions to not let up in the second half. Ten minutes into
the half Schultz broke away for a resounding dunk to give the Ephs
their biggest lead of the game thus far, 80-50.
Thanks to the big lead, lots of Ephs got in on the action.
Ten different Ephs scored in the game, including sophomore guard
Mike Moorstein (Darnestown, MD) who scored his first two points of
the season on a slicing runner in the lane.
In a dismal game for the visitors, Tufts was led by center Tom
Selby with 12 points. Leading scorer Jon Pierce managed only
6 as the Jumbos were held to just 41% shooting. In addition
to their cold shooting night, though, Tufts was done in by 17
turnovers (Williams committed just 10).
"We got a lot of guys much-needed playing time and our
camaraderie, effort, and attention to detail were all terrific,"
said Coach Maker, "even though we've faced adversity all year with
injury and sickness, we can't feel sorry for ourselves or make any
excuses - we are deep enough and talented enough to withstand when
things don't go our way."
Williams will have another home contest tomorrow (Saturday) at
3:00 pm versus Bates.
