In the final three minutes of play, the Eagles took their physical style of play to the next level. While on defense, they were constantly harassing the Amherst players, making it difficult for the Jeffs to enter into any of their offensive sets. Amherst hardly got a clean look at the basket during the final three minutes of play. The Jeffs looked to the officials to check Brockport's aggressiveness, but the men in pinstripes saw no reason to call any fouls against the hosts, much to the surprise of Hixon and his players.
Ultimately, however, Amherst's loss can only be blamed on its own inability to respond to Brockport's final push. "[The officiating] doesn't take anything away from Brockport," said Hixon. "They did a great job against us and I give them all the credit in the world."
With just about 3:30 to play, Pat Fitzsimons '03 knocked down a free throw, capping a three-point play and a 7-0 Amherst run which gave the Jeffs a 64-56 lead and silenced a boisterous capacity crowd in Brockport, N.Y. But the Eagles stormed back and, following a mid-range jumper, a three-point play, and a few defensive stops, the home team found themselves down by only three points with possession of the ball and plenty of time remaining in this do-or-die game. Brockport made the most of this possession by finding a wide open Ryan Carney in the paint for a routine lay-in after a slick back-door cut.
Up by one with a little over a minute to play, Amherst was desperate for a bucket to quell the Brockport storm. But, once again, the Jeffs surrendered the ball without being able to get a good look at the hoop. Brockport's leading scorer, Mike Medbury, proceeded to post up the smaller John Donovan '04 on the Eagles' next possession and, while he couldn't get a bucket, he was able to draw a foul on a somewhat dubious call. Medbury sunk both tosses from the charity stripe and, suddenly, the Lord Jeffs saw their eight point lead turn into a one point deficit.
As they always do late in the game, Amherst looked to their leading scorer, tri-captain Steve Zieja '03, to help them out of the jam. With about a minute to play, Zieja drove the lane and appeared to have the go-ahead bucket on his fingertips. But Zieja's shot never found the basket, as it was swatted away by Brockport center Brandon Mills in an amazing display of hustle and athleticism.
With 55 seconds to play, Zieja fouled Mills and sent the big man to the line for two foul shots. Mills missed both foul shots and guard Adam Harper '04 appeared to have the rebound in hand for a chance to reclaim the lead. But Harper was practically mauled by a Brockport player who was able to gain possession of the loose ball and call a timeout in a controversial non-call. But the questionable officiating did not stop there. Following the scramble, there was a confrontation in front of Brockport's bench. During the confusion, a plain-clothed Brockport player left the bench and raced on to the court in defense of his teammates. NCAA rules explicitly state that a technical foul is to be assessed to any player who leaves the bench during an altercation, but the officials made no call in this case.
The Jeffs would get another chance to take the lead, as Brockport threw the ball out of bounds on the subsequent in-bounds pass. But Amherst was still out of rhythm offensively and turned the ball over once again. This turnover was particularly costly, as it came with just 32 seconds to play. Amherst was consequently forced to immediately foul Brockport.
Brockport converted both free throws to take a 67-64 lead with 28 seconds to play. Harper, whose 18 first half points allowed Amherst to take a seven point lead at the half, got a decent look at a game-tying trey, but the sophomore sensation was out of heroics, as his attempt bounced off the back iron and away from the hoop.
Brockport hit two more free throws to secure the 69-64 win. Harper led all scorers with a careerhigh 25 points. The Jeffs shot a dismal 17-30 from the line and coughed up the ball on 24 occasions.
The game was the last collegiate game for tri-captains Pat Taverna '02, Paul Williams '02 and Mike Proctor '02. While they played sparingly during the course of the season and failed to register any playing time in this weekend's game, the trio still has plenty to be proud of. The Class of 2002 will graduate Amherst as the winningest in school history, with 79 wins in four seasons of work. Taverna, Williams and Proctor were members of two NESCAC Championship teams and made the NCAA Tournament three times.
Since all of Amherst's key players from this year's Sweet Sixteen and NESCAC Champion team will return next season, expectations will be very high. But that is small consolation now. "Of course I am excited about next year, because I think we have a great chance of going further than the Sweet Sixteen, since we will return so many players," said Harper. "But the reason this loss was so disappointing is because I thought we had the team this year to get to the Final Four and possibly win it all."