SPRINGFIELD, MASS.— In an unfortunately familiar turn of events, Williams (9-1) trailed Springfield BY (2-5) eleven points at halftime. Turnovers had racked up, and the Pride had attacked the rim, doing most of their damage in the paint. But the score didn't reveal everything.
Despite struggling to guard for most of the first half, Williams found their defensive rhythm in the last few minutes of the half. With the half almost finished, they blanked two Springfield half-court possessions and stopped the Pride from scoring on the break to finish out the half.
Building off the foundation of their solid defense, the Ephs attacked in the second half. The Pride's defense, on the other hand, was less than stellar: they racked up fouls by going for steals and playing way too close in the post.
Though the Ephs still had some shooting struggles, they fought back with pace and intensity.
Brandon Roughley had a fast break dunk that fired up the squad, and
Alex Stoddard made three free throws in a row followed by a fast break dunk of his own to tie the game.
Suddenly the Ephs were in the dominant position, but the leading scorer this afternoon, Springfield's Gary Bess (23pts), didn't take too kindly to the challenge. Bess would go on to score ten of the Pride's next twelve points, even wresting back a short-lived six point lead.
Bess' efforts could only do so much though, and the Ephs smoothly finished out the afternoon 61-56, despite rising tensions at the end of the game. Eph head coach gave props to both teams' efforts after the game.
"I thought Springfield played really hard and was packing things in," App said. "So we had to pick some things up, get moving a little bit more on offense, and really compete. The guys took it upon themselves and did it. I think that one lineup, in particular, of
Alex Lee,
Alex Stoddard,
Noah Dinkins,
Sammy Cooley, and
Brandon Arnold, really just gave us that push and confidence we needed to figure out a road win."
When asked what set this lineup apart, Coach App said: "It was literally just intensity. They were playing together and they were playing hard. It wasn't always perfect but they were just playing. I think sometimes our starters are trying to be perfect. I think down evenn, [the starters] were trying to figure that out a little bit, but that second group just came in and was like: 'Hey, we're playing basketball, let's go.' It's been fun. I'm proud of them to be 9-1, and like we keep talking about— it's different guys. Today it was
Alex Stoddard making huge plays on both ends of the floor. It's fun to watch."
The game's start looked pretty similar to its end. Karren spun over his left shoulder and banked it home on the game's very first possession. The Pride couldn't get their corner three to fall, and the Ephs gave Karren the ball again. This time he connected from behind the arc to send Williams up 5-0.
The Pride made a layup on the fast break, and
Cole Prowitt-Smith shot back with a three of his own. This hot start was ideal for the Ephs, but it wouldn't last long.
The Ephs played a slower game, generating offense in the half court and through individual scorers. The Pride, on the other hand, got things going on the fast break, and attacked Williams defenders with strong drives. This intensity allowed Springfield to build the eleven point lead they held at the half.
The Ephs flipped things around in the second, allowing them to take back that lead and more, finishing up 61-56. Now the team has a bit of a rest before their California games at the end of the month.
"We'll break for finals," said coach App. "Next week we'll do skill work and conditioning stuff based on guys' academic schedules. We'll meet in California three days before the two games, and we'll practice out there. No more full team practices until after break."
The Ephs will play their next game against University of Redlands, a school that's been ranked and has done well against ranked teams this year. The teams will face off in Santa Cruz, CA, at 6pm ET on December 29th.
