Ephs rally nets 65-62 win over Kean in Purple & Gold title game
Joe Geoghegan '10
WILLIAMSTOWN, MA -- Harlan Dodson drained a free throw with 4.6 seconds left Saturday to snap a tie and help the Williams College men's basketball team defeat Kean (N.J.) University, 65-62, in the championship game of the Purple & Gold Invitational at Chandler Gymnasium.
Williams junior Blake Schultz was named the tournament's MVP, with teammate Kevin Snyder joining him on the all-tournament team. Both Snyder and Schultz scored 15 points in the win, which improved the Ephs record to 9-3.
Eph junior Joe Geoghegan led Williams with 16 points and six rebounds.
The Cougars fell to 6-7 despite the efforts of Vinnie Darpino (17 points) and Akinwande Oshodi (15 points). Both were named to the all-tournament team.
The Ephs trailed by as much as 14 points in the first half before rallying to take a 38-36 lead by halftime. Williams trailed by six with 5:35 left in the game before rallying past Kean.
"They dictated the tempo all game long," said Ephs head coach Mike Maker. "They were very well coached and had a lot of skill. I told my team I was very proud of them because we didn't play our best but we found a way to win. This game will pay large dividends for us as we approach our NESCAC schedule. We needed to win a tough, close game."
Kean held a 59-53 lead after Bryan Lytle knocked down a foul line jumper with 5:35 to go, but the Ephs scored seven straight points to take a one-point lead with exactly three minutes to go. Schultz hit a pair of free throws, Kevin Snyder drained a three and after a turnover, Dodson's turnaround jumper in the paint at the shot clock expired hit the back of the rim, shot straight up into the air, and fell softly through the net.
The Cougars asnwered once again when Lytle putback an offensive rebound as he was fouled and drained the ensuing free throw for a 62-60 lead with 2:24 remaining. With 1:45 to go, Schultz ripped a rebound out of a Cougars hand, gained control and knocked down a 14-foot jumper to tie things at 62.
It stayed that way until the Ephs gained posession off a Cougar miss. A timeout with 17.5 seconds left set up a play designed to get the ball to Schultz, Snyder or Geoghegan, with several options for each.
Snyder drove the baseline, but his shot was altered. Dodson grabbed the rebound in the paint and was fouled with 4.6 seconds left. He missed the first freebie, but sank the second.
Kean's ensuing in-bounds pass went out of bounds, and Schultz then drained two free throws with 2.6 seconds to go for a three-point lead.
The Ephs trailed by as much as 14 in the first half after a Dean Hughes jumper made it 26-12 Kean with 9:12 remaining. But a renewed effort on the glass and inside the paint helped Williams claw back into the contest.
The Ephs finished the half on a 26-10 run over the final nine minutes as Geoghegan went to work for seven of his points in that stretch, five coming from the foul line. The Ephs still trailed by 10 with 4:20 to go, but outscored the Cougars 11-0 to take a 38-36 lead into halftime.
All-Tournament team: Blake Schultz, Williams (MVP); Kevin Snyder, Williams; Akinwande Oshodi, Kean; Vinnie Darpino, Kean; Sam Simmons, RPI.
