Men's Basketball can't keep pace with Ephs, fall 83-69

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. – The MCLA Men's Basketball Team welcomed neighboring Williams College to the Amsler Campus Center Gymnasium this evening, looking to bounce back from a tough loss at the Cadet/Mariner Classic. Craig Williams recorded a new career-high for the second time in three games, but the Ephs got 18 points each from Alex Lee and Brandon Roughley.

THE BASICS:

• Date: Tuesday, November 26, 2024
• Score: Williams 83, MCLA 69
• Records: Williams College Ephs 4-1 (NESCAC 0-0) | MCLA Trailblazers 0-8 (MASCAC 0-0)

HOW IT HAPPENED (Courtesy of Williams College Athletics)

MCLA (0-8) did their best to hang with Williams (4-1) in the first half. The Ephs' starters came out hot with a rounded attack to go up 14-0. Alex Lee had the game's first points, driving left, and the next two cutting through the paint, assisted by Brandon Roughley.

Roughley followed up with two layups of his own. Then, Hudson Hansen and Sammy Cooley sank back-to-back triples to go up 14-0. The Trailblazers fought hard for their first points, pulling down an offensive board and sending the ball to Craig Williams for a three.

This seemed to get MCLA off the ground. Craig Williams had another three, then Jayden Mills sank one, then Colby Burleson dropped one in. The Trailblazers' first layup got them within six points— center Joshua Bissaillon pivoted into his shot, setting the score at 23-17 Williams.

The Ephs responded though, adding on nine points in a run book ended by a spin move for Matt DeVine and a triple for Alex Lee. With just over seven minutes to play in the first half, Williams was 15 points ahead.

The Trailblazers found their poise again, and stayed even with the Ephs through the end of the half, trading buckets for the most part. At halftime Eph head coach Kevin App reiterated a few principles to his players. One of the points he made was to look out for back-cutting opportunities.

First-year Aidan Yates took App's advice, and was rewarded with a tomahawk dunk with twelve minutes to play. On these principles, App said the coaching staff was "breaking some of those high school habits… A lot of times the tendency is to run to the basketball, but we're really trying to put pressure on the paint with our cutting, so it's just getting guys to know early in the game we have to be thinking movement."

"This time of year, we're trying to build habits," he said, "and there's a few guys we've been trying to internalize some things, and show them that if they do certain things it'll actually make their life a little easier, and their teammates' lives a little bit easier."

MCLA kept it tough for Williams in the second half, too, outscoring the Ephs by a point, 39-38. Craig Williams continued to lead for the Trailblazers, putting up 9, 2, and 2 in the second half along with a steal. Guards Jackson Brown and JoJo Garcia also shined, earning their nine points apiece. Garcia also picked up eight rebounds, the most of any player in the half.

"They always give us everything they've got," remarked App on MCLA's tenacity. "It's always a good game for us, to learn about ways we can get better."

Despite today's game being right before the break, coach App talked about approaching every game with the same intensity. "We get 24 of these guaranteed," he said. "I don't care if it's on Thanksgiving. This is too great of an experience to waste— the opportunity to get out and compete."

The team's younger players seemed a little shaken at times, and that was evidenced by the Trailblazers ability to outpace the Ephs in the second half. As compared to the last two games, where Eph first years scored 17 and 23, respectively, today was slower, with first-years adding on just six. Still, with a healthy lead leftover from the first half, there was no need to panic, and the Ephs as a whole stayed composed.

"We've had a lot of firsts, and I was curious how this group would respond to the first loss," stated App. Our veterans came out and played really hard, leading the charge just like they've done the first five games. I think our first years learned that bad lesson that if you don't come with the right focus and intensity, anybody can beat you— no matter how the week before went for them— so you have to approach every game the same. I thought our veterans did that, and our younger guys had some moments."

When the game ended, the score was 83-69. 83 points is Williams' second best this year— MCLA held their own remarkably well.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

• Field Goals / %: Williams 29-50 / 58%, MCLA 23-56 / 41.1%
• 3 Points / %: Williams 5-15 / 33.3%, MCLA 9-34 / 26.5%
• Free Throw / %: Williams 20-28 / 71.4%, MCLA 14-16 / 87.5%
• Rebounds: Williams 29, MCLA 30
• Points off Turnovers: Williams 19, MCLA 11
• Second Chance Points: Williams 6, MCLA 13
• Points in the Paint: Williams 48, MCLA 26
• Bench Points: Williams 22, MCLA 22

UP NEXT:

On Tuesday, MCLA will be back in action when they travel to Amherst College for a non-conference matchup with the Mammoths at the LeFrak Gymnasium. Tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m.

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