Williamstown, MA - It was the first NESCAC conference game of the season for the Williams College Ephs (9-3) as they played a rematch against their Little 3 rival, the Wesleyan University Cardinals (5-7). In a competitive game with Wesleyan's hot shooting touch, Eph
Micah Walton's breakout game along with timely Williams shooting led to a hard-fought 69-64 victory.
Wesleyan was determined not to let their previous loss to Williams a week ago deter them in this game. They came out with an early wing-three for the game's first basket. Sophomore
Mairi Smith matched this with a corner jumper of her own with the shot clock winding down but the hot Cardinal shooting at the beginning of this game persisted with a delicate post fade connecting and a contested corner three falling as well, 10-2 Wesleyan. Senior captain
Arianna Gerig would be the one to end the run with a baseline drive and finish, however, the Cardinals came right back with a top-of-the-key three. For Williams, first-year Eph point guard
Micah Walton would be the needed spark plug, creating a mid-range opportunity and converting a front-court steal into a transition lay-up, 13-9 Cardinals. Late into the first Williams implemented the full-court press which has been successful for them so far this season and it was critical in draining the Cardinals who were hesitant to sub out their guards. Yet it would not be enough because, at the end of the first quarter , Wesleyan had a 20-14 lead.
In the second quarter, the Cardinals utilized their shooting outside threat to create easier opportunities down low. While the Williams offense struggled to finish down low, Wesleyan finished in the paint with a mixture of pump fakes and passing plays, 24-14. Unfortunately for the Ephs,
Arianna Gerig went down with an injury but
Micah Walton stepped up in her absence, scoring off of smooth mid-range jumpers and a crafty lay-up finish to shrink the Wesleyan lead back to single-digits, 24-19. The rest of the Ephs kept it coming with a gorgeous inside pass from Smith setting up
Tatum Leuenberger for the finish. Walton kept it coming herself too with a moving jumper to make it a one-possession game. Also, the defense of forward
Cortland McBarron started to shine through in the second quarter with her maintaining the full-court press and forcing turnovers. Despite this in the final minutes of the quarter, the Cardinals strung together a small run with an easy post-finish and a deep three. However, with less than a minute remaining Williams closed the distance with a corner three from
Logan Coster and another Walton fade. Walton had 15 points in the first half but it was not enough as at halftime, Wesleyan led 31-28.
The first few minutes of the third quarter was a defensive showcase for both teams until Smith's baseline shot but the Wesleyan sharp shooting came right back with a contested three. Fortunately for the Ephs, Gerig was back on the court out of halftime but
Ellie Tounkara would be the hero with a three-point make and then an open lay-up off the Gerig steal to take the first Williams lead of the game, 35-34. Walton added to her impressive game with an and-one paint finish. The quarter went on as a slow back-and-forth contest with both teams playing smothering defense. The last shot of the quarter came from a Cardinal guard slipping by the Eph defense for a corner three to retake the lead at 41-39 before the fourth quarter.
The Cardinals continued their strong starts to quarters in the fourth with a mid-range make and a wing-three with the tiniest bit of space allowed, 46-39. After a Williams timeout, Leuenberger provided a spark in the form of a three off an assist from Smith who had 6 assists on the night. Walton completed the comeback with another and-one drive. But when it mattered most the shooting for Williams picked up. Smith and Tounkara each had a three to retake the lead at 50-48 with half of a quarter left to play. Tounkara's shooting touch stayed hot with a corner mid-range make into a subsequent wing-three to grow the Williams lead to 5. However, after a few slow minutes, with less than a minute remaining, Wesleyan drained a deep three to make it a one-point game, 56-55. On the next play, Walton converted two free throws after she was fouled in the back court but on the other end, Wesleyan made two of their own to keep it a three-point game. Gerig had the chance to keep it at a three-point lead but she made only one free throw and put Williams in a dangerous position against a hot-shooting team. Wesleyan opted for the two and tied the game at 59 with 5 seconds left. Williams took a timeout to draw up the final play of the game but they could not convert and the game went to overtime.
In overtime, Walton got fouled on a jumper and made one of two free throws. She stayed the saving grace for the team with a moving mid-range jumper to grow the lead to 3. However, the Cardinals played the free throw game and were able to take a one-point lead after two trips to the line. Yet continuing her incredible game, Walton had an unbelievable and-one and converted the free throw. Wesleyan on the other end got bailed out and given two free throws. But to close out the game, Walton and Gerig made their free throws and iced the game.
Micah Walton finished with 31 points and Williams extended their win-streak to 7 games with the 69-64 victory
On the breakout performance and clutch victory for the Ephs, head coach
Pat Manning said, "Micah had an amazing performance. But I think what impressed me the most about her is that she did it in clutch time. With the game on the line, she stepped up to the free-throw line and delivered. Mairi did a really good job too and this is the best rebounding game that she has had. In a game where our players struggled, players came through. It was a gutsy win and goes to show how competitive NESCAC is and how competitive everyone is. You can throw records out the window every time you play a NESCAC game because everyone goes after the win as hard as they can."
On her great game,
Micah Walton said, "I credit my performance to everyone else. They played great defense, had great passing, and they trusted me which is most important thing. This team is amazing."
Williams looks to continue their success tomorrow on January 11th against Trinity College at 3pm in Williamstown.
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