West Massachusetts News

Ephs Bounce Back with 75-59 Senior Day Win Over Bates

 Trailing by eight points with 13 minutes remaining, the Williams College Ephs (17-3, 4-3 NESCAC) found a level missing in their previous few games, as they used a 20-0 run to capture a commanding 75-59 victory over the Bates Bobcats (7-12, 1-5 NESCAC) on senior day in Chandler Gym. All three seniors — Spencer Spivy, Ryan Moon, and David Elien — started on their special day. Prior to the game, they took pictures with their families and were honored for their accomplishments with the program.

"I thought yesterday we got tight and played less hard, and today we flipped it," App said of the team's poise while facing adversity today. "We started competing harder and more aggressively on defense, and with more pace on offense. We embraced it more than shied away from it today."

Coming off of back-to-back losses for the first time all year, it seemed the Ephs had come prepared to play as they jumped out to a 14-point first half lead. That comfortable cushion became just two at the half, however, as the Ephs struggled to keep their foot on the gas. As the slower play for the Ephs continued into the second half, it seemed that the result in yesterday's loss against Tufts would be repeated if nothing changed. 

Rather than try to make plays with unnecessary fanciness, Williams began to play, well, "Williams Basketball." One basket led to another, one stop led to another, and the Ephs soon had turned the eight-point deficit into a double-digit advantage. Spivy stepped up in a massive way to tally 19 points on the afternoon, while Declan Porter went 5-7 from deep to score 18. Nate Karren also added 13 in the win. 

The Ephs played with great pace to start the game, using their three-point shooting abilities to open up a 13-4 lead seven minutes into the contest. Porter hit the first two treys, and Karren nailed one of his own. David Elien also buried a crisp mid-range jumper to help propel the Ephs' offense.

Karren's second triple in as many attempts increased the Ephs' advantage to 11. Another finish inside from the junior put him into double figures less than 10 minutes into the contest. 

With the Ephs up 25-11, however, Bates stepped into high gear as they embarked on an 18-6 run on 8-11 shooting to cut the gap to two points at the half. After a quick 5-0 run from the Bobcats cut the deficit to 25-16 with 5:18 to go in the half, the Ephs took a timeout, but it was unsuccessful in stopping the bleeding. The hot start from Williams cooled off significantly as 25-11 turned into 31-29.

The Bobcats came out significantly stronger than the Ephs in the second, growing their lead to as high as eight at 46-38. Their consistency in the paint helped open the outside; they capitalized on excellent spacing, starting 2-2 from deep.

Alex Lee stepped up with the Ephs needing points, before Karren hit another three-pointer to make the gap just three with 13:18 to go. After another defensive stop, Karren found Hudson Hansen on a cut to the hoop to trail just 46-45. In a rare sighting, the Ephs forced consecutive shot-clock violations, but were unable to capitalize on the other end. Even when Hanson swatted away a Bates attempt, the Ephs turned the ball over as they attempted to take the lead.

Whatever head coach Kevin App said to the Ephs during a subsequent full timeout was effective, as Williams scored 13 straight points as they began to find their stride and play to their potential. When added to the spurt before the timeout, the run totaled 20-0. First, a Spivy drive gave the Ephs the lead back. Next, Spivy knocked down another deep ball. 

Original source can be found here