The season got off to a rickety start for the men’s basketball team (1-4, 0-1 CC), which dropped its first two games in the Equinox Classic before being able to rebound and snag a victory against Arcadia on Nov. 21.
Unable to carry over the momentum from its victory over Arcadia, the team fell Tuesday night to conference opponent and 23rd-ranked Johns Hopkins, 73-57. The first half was tight, though the Blue Jays maintained a narrow lead through most of the half. The tide of the game turned briefly as a lay-up by guard Matt Kurman ’08 put the Garnet up by one, but the Blue Jays made a few quick scores to go into the half leading 34-33.
The second half spelled nothing but doom for the Garnet, even though center Ian McCormick ’08 ended the game with 16 points, followed closely by Kurman with 13 points. Though the half began close, Johns Hopkins went on a 12-0 run that essentially left the Garnet fighting for its life for the remainder of the game. Hopkins was firing on all cylinders, while the Garnet struggled offensively. Almost half of the Garnet points came off the bench with Matt Turner ’10 (six points) and Matt Allen ’10 (five points) leading the charge. The Blue Jays held onto their lead for the remainder of the game.
“We started strong but couldn’t stop their big men,” Turner said. “The first part of the second half has become a problem. We took a lot of gambles on defense.”
A week earlier, the Garnet opened its season by participating in the Equinox Classic, a tournament co-hosted by Swarthmore and Haverford, on Nov. 17 and 18. In its first game, Swarthmore played against Wittenberg, a team that made the Division III NCAA finals last season and is ranked sixth nationally by D3hoops.com. The Tigers prevailed over the Garnet by a score of 57-46.
Regardless of a 19-point effort from forward Steve Wolf ’08, Swarthmore could not get within four points of the Tigers. Wittenberg slowly pulled away and essentially ended the game by slipping in two free throws to put the game out of reach in the final minutes.
The second day of the Equinox Classic also ended badly for Swarthmore, with the Garnet losing to Trinity College, 76-65. The Bantams took the lead 43-40 going into the intermission and opened the second half with a 12-1 run to take a commanding lead. Late in the half, a long ball by Dillon McGrew ’07 gave the Garnet the lead again, but Bantam Robert Taylor dropped back-to-back threes to ice the game for the Bantams. Wolf had a double-double with 20 points and 11 rebounds while McCormick and Kurman each put in 16 points for the Garnet.
The Garnet bounced back with a win over Arcadia 75-66 thanks in large part to Allen, who laid in four threes leading to a 16-point effort that was matched by Wolf. Double-digit games by McCormick (15 points) and Kurman (13 points) also contributed to the Swarthmore victory. The game ended with a savage effort from Allen, who hit four free throws in the final minute.
“Our offensive efficiency was really good. We took care of the ball and kept up our intensity in the second half,” Allen said.
The Garnet continued its season last night when it traveled to Division I Lehigh University. The Mountain Hawks, who compete in the Patriot League, easily outmatched Swarthmore, winning 96-33.
“Lehigh is extremely good,” coach Lee Wimberly said. “This by far the best Division I team that I’ve faced since I’ve been here.”
Swarthmore next will host conference foe Franklin & Marshall on Dec. 2 at 2 p.m. in Tarble Pavilion.
57 Wittenberg
46 Swarthmore
76 Trinity
65 Swarthmore
66 Arcadia
75 Swarthmore
57 Swarthmore
73 Johns Hopkins
33 Swarthmore
96 Lehigh
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