The top-ranked Lord Jeffs put their perfect 15-0 record on the line against third-ranked defending national champion Williams, a team Amherst humbled in a 16-point victory early in January at LeFrak Gymnasium. The Jeffs took a commanding 33-22 halftime lead and stayed in the driver's seat for most of the second half. But to their credit, the Ephs slowly battled their way back against a banged up Amherst unit-big men Andrew Schiel '05 and John Casnocha '06 were actually forced off the court in the second half due to injuries while Ray Corrigan '05 and John Bedford '06 managed to play through nagging injuries of their own.
The Jeffs kept their composure through the injuries and seemed on the verge of snapping the defending national champions' 49-game home winning streak when senior tri-captain John Donovan stepped to the charity stripe with Amherst up by three points with just 25 seconds remaining in regulation. Unfortunately, Donovan, in the midst of a career day offensively, was unable to convert the front end of the one-and-one and Williams remained one possession away from tying the game. Forced to attempt a three-pointer, the Ephs tried to get an open look for all-NESCAC guard Michael Crotty, but while Crotty was unable to free himself up for a shot, he managed to find a wide-open Tucker Kain. With time winding down, Kain took the pass from Crotty and buried a game-tying three to the delight of the hometown crowd.
The Ephs came out blazing in the extra session and quickly staked themselves to a 10-point advantage. The Jeffs rallied valiantly toward the end of the overtime, but they were unable to overcome their initial deficit and fell by a score of 84-80. Donovan led the Jeffs with 25 points, while Kain had 29 for the Ephs. With the win, Williams becomes the heavy favorite to host the NESCAC Tournament in late February. The Ephs also bumped up a spot to second in the national rankings and Amherst fell to third.
But despite this setback, Amherst has proven itself to be a legitimate contender for the National Championship this season. After the graduation of stalwarts Steve Zieja '03, Pat Fitzsimons '03 and Ryan Faulkner '03 last year, many saw this as a rebuilding season for the Jeffs, but this team has proven that it may be even better than last year's Amherst squad. "I think our success so far this season is largely due to how well people have stepped up to fill the holes that were left when our seniors from last year graduated," said Donovan. "Guys who had limited roles on the team in the past have really taken it upon themselves to elevate their games and that has made all the difference for us, and that goes for every class, from the freshmen to the seniors."
The high point of Amherst's season thus far came exactly two weeks prior to this disappointing loss, when the Jeffs hosted the Ephs in a non-conference showdown. Williams entered the contest as the number-one team in the country, nurturing a 28-game win streak that included last year's National Championship and an upset victory over The College of the Holy Cross, a Div. I NCAA tournament team two of the past three years. Amherst sizzled offensively and took a 45-31 lead at the half thanks in part to an impressive shooting performance from Schiel.
Williams momentarily cut its deficit to single digits early in the second half, but the Jeffs relieved their guests of any reason for optimism using a suffocating defense that kept the Ephs off the scoreboard entirely for a full five minutes in the final half. Amherst's lead grew to as many as 23 points before Williams connected on a few late threes to bring the final score to 78-62. Schiel topped all scorers with 16 points and tri-captain Tim Jones had a career game with 12 points, seven rebounds, six assists, five steals and two blocks. Williams' last setback had come on the same court almost a full year earlier when the Jeffs handed the 2002-03 Ephs their only loss of the season.
Undefeated at 10-0 at the time, Amherst followed up its emotional win over Williams by hosting Wesleyan University in another Little Three showdown. Traditionally, Amherst has been prone to letdowns following high-tension games against Williams, but the Jeffs defeated the Cardinals in convincing fashion. In fact, Amherst mustered its most prolific offensive performance of the season in the 108-81 non-league victory. Five players finished in double figures for Amherst, led by backup point guard Russell Lee '05, who scored 18 points.
The Jeffs commenced their NESCAC slate on the weekend of Jan. 16 by hosting two schools from the Maine troika. That Friday night, Amherst downed Colby College by a score of 81-52. The Jeffs were only up by four at intermission, but took care of business in the second half to ensure the comfortable win.
The following afternoon, Amherst faced off against the Polar Bears of Bowdoin College. Bowdoin scored the first seven points of the game and for the second consecutive night, the Jeffs found themselves in a battle in the first half. Up only four heading into the second half, Amherst caught fire in the final period, going on a remarkable 31-6 run which put the game well out of reach. The once close game turned into a 93-63 blowout. Bedford, the team's sixth man, continued his impressive Interterm play with a career-high 25 point performance. The win over Bowdoin gave Amherst the number one ranking in the country for the first time in school history, as the previous number one team, Hampden-Sydney College, lost that very same weekend.
On Tuesday, Jan. 20, Amherst showed off its top ranking for the first time with a 79-47 win over Elms College, before resuming its NESCAC schedule three days later with a date at Middlebury College. Schiel converted five of six three point attempts en route to a 23 point performance, and tri-captain Adam Harper '04 chipped in another 19 to lead Amherst to a 91-67 win and set up the much anticipated rematch with Williams the next day.
Amherst began its Interterm in Florida where the Jeffs posted an 87-52 win over Johnson & Wales University on Dec. 30. The Jeffs also took down Salve Regina College by a 81-40 margin on Jan. 5.
Last night Amherst won a tight non-conference game over Westfield State College on the road. Harper scored his 1,000th career point during the Jeffs' 70-64 triumph.
The Jeffs now stand at 16-1 overall and 3-1 in NESCAC play. This weekend Amherst will look to overcome its Williams disappointment and resume its winning ways when the team hosts Tufts University on Friday and Bates College on Saturday.