The men's basketball team showed some newfound resilience this weekend at the second annual New England Big Four Challenge held at Babson College.
On Saturday, the Jumbos dispatched Salem State 80-71 to advance to Sunday's championship game. But the Jumbos then fell to an undefeated Brandeis team in the tournament final 60-52.
Two Jumbos were named to the All-Tournament team. Junior Alex Orchowski posted two double-doubles in the Challenge for a weekend total of 33 rebounds — 22 on Saturday alone — and 28 points. The Div. I transfer now averages 11.3 boards per game — almost four more than last year's rebounding leader Jon Pierce (LA ‘10). Sophomore guard Alex Goldfarb, who posted 18 points in the Jumbos' semifinal win over the Vikings, also made the All-Tournament team.
On Sunday, the Jumbos found themselves down in the title match 38-15, with 15:21 remaining and could see their hopes of an upset slipping away. But unlike in years past when the deficit may have caused a team-wide unraveling, this Tufts team launched a comeback. Goldfarb started the action with a jumper that set off a 10-0 Tufts run to make it 38-25 midway through the second half. The Jumbos continued to determinedly chip away at the Judges' lead and came within eight, 48-40, with under three minutes to play thanks to four straight points from Orchowski.
"The biggest reason we were able to stay in the game was that we continued to get stops," junior tri-captain James Long said. "Our team defense as a whole was good throughout the game, but what changed late in the game was getting into our sets on offense and getting the fast break going. Once we started to do what we do on offense, we started clicking because the defense was there the whole time."
With 1:09 on the clock, the score stood at 53-42. Yet Brandeis converted seven for eight from the free throw line in the final minute to secure the victory.
"Overall I think it was a matter of us relaxing in the second half," Orchowski said. "We had to realize we could really play with Brandeis. I think a lot of us had nerves and in the second half we really came together and were able to calm down as a whole."
The day before, it was Tufts who stayed in control from the starting whistle. After opening the game with a 15-4 run, the Jumbos fought off a 12-4 Salem State run and extended its lead to 12 points — including six straight points from sophomore Scott Anderson and a rebounding clinic by Orchowski in the final minute — at the half.
"I think we just executed better on Saturday," Long said. "The common thread through both games was good team defense, but on Saturday we matched that with offensive execution and good shooting and intensity on both sides of the ball. The things we did on the second half on Sunday we were able to do throughout the whole game on Saturday."
The Jumbos stayed ahead by double digits for most of the second half on Saturday and stretched the lead to as many as 15 points at 12:27 to play. With 4:10 remaining, Goldfarb made it 72-58, but the 14-point cushion seemed to make the Jumbos complacent for a few minutes.
The Vikings charged back to within five, 74-69, before freshman Oliver Cohen hit four straight free throws and Anderson hit two of his own, extending the lead to 80-71 — a lead that would hold for the final 24 seconds.
The 1-1 weekend was a mixed bag for the Jumbos. All five of Tufts' starters had double-digit scoring performances, but the Jumbos had long stretches on Sunday when they struggled to score. Orchowski proved to be the only constant in the two games, which must change if the Jumbos hope to contend in the NESCAC.
"I think we can see that we have a good chance to compete this year and become a successful team," Orchowski said. "Over the weekend, we saw what we can do. We had some mental lapses, but we really saw how great of a team we could become. I also think we showed that, even when we were up against some adversity, we showed a lot of fight."
The team, now at 3-3 overall, will also need to turn around its turnover ratio before tonight's home meeting with Plymouth State and Thursday's away clash with UMass Dartmouth. In Saturday's win, the Jumbos gave up 19 points off turnovers and 13 free points in the championship — totals that could prove devastating in January's NESCAC play.
The two games in the next three days will provide quick feedback on what needs to be worked on over winter break.
"These are definitely two big games against two good teams," Long said. "Especially against Plymouth [tonight]. We're just focused on taking care of the ball and getting the ball inside on offense; we know the defensive intensity is going to be there because that has been our bread and butter all year ... we just need to do what we do best on offense and take high-quality shots."
"The ultimate goal is to be able to relax more and play more together as a team," Orchowski added. "We just want to improve more as a team with each game."
