Hamilton, a NESCAC rival in football, but not in basketball, made it into the dance by virtue of winning the Liberty League, a New York State conference. In the first round Hamilton barely escaped Plattsburgh State University, winning by one point in overtime after a Plattsburgh player missed two-consecutive free throws with a second on the clock to hand the win to Hamilton.
The Continentals were not so lucky against the Jeffs. Stifling defense was the theme of the first half, as both squads had some difficulty finding their rhythm in the early going, with neither team managing to crack the scoreboard in the first two minutes. It would be the Jeffs who broke out of the doldrums first, with senior co-captain John Bedford beginning what would be a stellar performance with a three pointer. Stingy defense followed, and Amherst steadily built a double-digit lead despite not looking their best on the offensive end of the floor. The Continentals shot an anemic 25.8 percent in the first half, including just 1-10 from behind the arc and also turned the ball over nine times. By intermission the Jeffs had built a respectable 14-point advantage, 37-23.
The second stanza only brought further troubles for Hamilton, as Amherst began to find its groove offensively, leaning heavily on spectacular performances by Bedford and fellow senior co-captain John Casnocha. Bedford fell just one-point shy of his career high, eventually dropping 30 on the helpless Continentals. In the process he managed to leapfrog John Hammermesh '94 and Robb Caseria '82 to move into fifth all-time on Amherst's scoring list with 1,455 points. Meanwhile, Casnocha showed that he has found his three-point shot at just the right time in the season, going 5-7 from the land of plenty en route to 16 points. Forward Dan Wheeler '07 also contributed 16 as the Jeffs rolled to a 24-point dismantling of the Continentals. Tsakane Ngobeni led the way for Hamilton in defeat, scoring 21 points and grabbing five boards.
"I think we played pretty well," said Casnocha. "They shot poorly, but that probably had something to do with our defense. We executed well, but the one thing we could do better is rebound. That will be a point of emphasis at practice this week."
Since Amherst is the host site for the Sweet 16, Tufts University and Utica and St. John Fisher Colleges will all make the trip to LeFrak Gymnasium, with the winner of this weekend's games earning a trip to the Final Four in Salem, Va.
First up for Amherst will be Tufts, a team they seem to run into every couple of weeks. The squads have already met twice this season, with the Jeffs winning both contests, the first by a score of 99-70 and the second in the NESCAC Championship by a score of 94-86 in overtime. NESCAC first-teamer Dan Martin and frontcourt-mate Jake Weitzen gave the Jeffs fits in the low post in the last meeting and will certainly be looking to do just a bit more damage this time around with the stakes higher than ever before. Arguably more is on the line for the Jeffs, who are widely expected to advance to the Final Four, while the Jumbos have already won more games and advanced further in the national tournament than any other team in their school's history.
"Both teams will be playing their best because of what's at stake. There will be no easy baskets," said Casnocha. "It could be hard to play a team three times, but it is up to us more than them. If we execute our style we will be able to win."
The Jeffs and Jumbos will tip off at 8 p.m. on Friday, after the Utica-St. John Fishes game. If Amherst wins, the Jeffs will play the winner of the Utica-St. John Fishes game (Friday 6 p.m.) on Saturday night at 7 p.m.