Worcester, MASS.— Williams (8-3) took a resounding win over the Worcester State (3-8) Lancers this afternoon. The Ephs led by 27 at the half and took the game by 34 points.
The Williams offense was strong, with three players in double digits—
Aidan Yates (16pts),
Alex Lee (15pts), and
Brandon Roughley (11pts). The Ephs as a whole shot 52%, and 41% from three. However, it was the defense that put the Ephs over the top.
Though the Lancers may have been rusty, coming off a one month break, the Ephs' defense played a big role in slowing their scoring. Rather than the 42% FG and 32% 3pt the Lancers have shot on the season, Williams kept them to 22% FG and 0-17 from distance.
Aidan Yates was strong on the defensive end, too, leading the Ephs with 7 rebounds and 3 blocks.
Williams played team-first ball, making the extra pass on a number of plays. In the game, the Ephs tallied 17 assists, over their usual 12.5.
At the end of the first half, the Lancers had scored only 14 points: 6 in the paint, 4 from the stripe, and 4 more on long midrange shots. They seemed to adjust a little to the Ephs' solid defense in the second half, scoring the first points with another long midrange shot, then cutting into the lane for two layups in the opening minutes.
The Ephs settled back into their strong defensive rhythm, and scored 31 to the Lancers' 2nd-half 20 to finish out the game. Due to the comfortable margin, the Eph coaching staff was able to give playing time to some of the team's newer players.
Junior guard
Onyeraluobu Chibuogwu got on the board with perfect 2-2 shooting from three, 2 boards, and a steal. Following last Monday's game, where he scored his first points against NYU,
Matthew Nachamkin dropped in a three to add to Williams lead.
Despite facing a tough challenge from the Ephs, the Lancers didn't back down. WSU scored twice in the last minute, attacking the paint and demonstrating their competitiveness. Brandon Goris led the Lancers with 10 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2 steals. The game wrapped up 74-40, a resounding win for Williams after Monday's tough loss.
"It was a great game," said Eph head coach
Kevin App. "We've had a great week of practice since New York City and wanted to see that translate to the guys competing and getting back to some of the habits we were playing with the first semester."
"I thought we definitely took a step in the right direction from those first two games back in New York to today," he continued. "I just really loved how hard we played, how confidently guys played, and stepped up and made plays."
App focused especially on the Ephs' stellar defense today. "The way we want to play is a team-defensive style and if we're playing tired it's hard to execute that game plan. I thought for the most part today we were engaged, working hard to make sure as a unit Worcester didn't score. I thought 1 through 13, everybody I played today, made positive plays within what we teach."
The Ephs play next on Monday, Jan. 6th, against Springfield. The game will be at home in Chandler Gym, with tip off at 7:30 PM.
