Williamstown, MASS.— Williams (15-4) got out to a slower start on the offensive end, but picked it up to end the first half up ten. The Ephs' defense was solid throughout.
Noah Dinkins set the tone with a fast break block on the Tigers' second possession. SUNY Cobleskill (11-8) scored the first points of the game on a contested fade away.
The Ephs got their first points after five minutes of play.
Cole Prowitt-Smith dished the ball to
Brandon Roughley for a three. However, the Tigers weren't so hot on the offensive end themselves, only adding on two more points in this period. A three for
Nate Karren gave the Ephs a 6-4 lead.
The teams stayed even for the next stretch. Cobleskill's Kobe Long hit two tough threes.
Hudson Hansen got the Ephs fired up, blowing by his defender and finishing with a slam.
Alex Lee sprinted past an off-ball screen for a catch-and-shoot three. On the very next play, Karren sent a long pass to Lee on the break, who finished with a layup.
The Tigers responded by playing elevated defense for a while, keeping the Ephs scoreless for three minutes. They made a three of their own and a jumper to tie the game up, 15 all.
Williams found their offensive rhythm to end the half. The biggest contributor to success was ball movement. After two free throws for
Brandon Roughley, all 13 of the Ephs' points before the buzzer were assisted.
At the break the score was 30-20. The Ephs had maintained a strong presence in the paint, out rebounding the Tigers 21-16 and scoring 16 paint points.
The Ephs picked up where they left off in the second. Roughley picked up an offensive board and was fouled on the shot for two free throws. Dinkins and Karren added on two apiece, assisted by Karren and Prowitt-Smith respectively.
From 14:31 to 11:22,
Alex Stoddard sank three triples.
Dan Lee added on two in this period off a baseline drive. The combination of scoring from across the roster and the Ephs' signature defense proved too much for the Tigers, and the lead began to widen.
Williams maintained a twenty point lead for the rest of the game. Dinkins and
Isiaha Dickens both finished and-one layups.
Alex Stoddard tied his career high with his fifth three of the game. At the end the score was a decisive 73-53.
After the game, Eph head coach
Kevin App talked about the importance of non-conference games: "They're all super important whether we play them in November or now. They're an opportunity to get out and compete and learn and improve. I thought the guys approached it the right way tonight. Number two on their team, Long, is as good an individual talent as we've played all year, and we thought we really made him work," App said.
Coach App pointed to "depth and confidence" as the team's strong points going into the final stretch of NESCAC games. He highlighted two players in particular, saying, "
Alex Stoddard's been playing so well, and just with a joy of being out there after missing all last season— he had to miss last week being out sick— so to watch him come back out, get his wind in practice yesterday, and then play like he did tonight was great. And Hudson, his body physically was hurting him all first semester. Now he's coming back and then it's getting that mental and emotional side, and I think you see what a confident, high energy Hudson looks like the last two games. It's been fun to watch."
Coach App also shared his outlook moving forward: "We have two days to prepare for our final road NESCAC weekend. Two hard tests. I was proud of our guys after Saturday. I thought today we came out with that same competitiveness and energy, and had some phenomenal ball movement possessions. I was proud of how we approached tonight."
The Ephs will play next against Tufts this Friday, at 7pm in Medford, Mass.
