The men's basketball team may be sitting in the middle of the pack at 3-3 in the NESCAC, but after back-to-back double-digit wins, they're riding high. On Tuesday night, Tufts welcomed UMass-Boston to Cousens Gymnasium for one of its last non-league matchups of the season. And while everything outside the gym was freezing, the Jumbos were heating up inside. After giving up just 11 points in the first half, the team went on to dominate the Beacons 69-39 and bolster any confidence that had wavered after going 1-1 the previous weekend.
The game belonged to Tufts from the start. Five minutes before halftime, the Jumbos stretched their lead to double digits after tri-captain guard Matt Galvin, a senior, found himself with an open lane to the hoop for a lay-up. Two minutes into the second half, the lead reached 20 on a three-point play from junior guard Amauris Quezada. From there, the Jumbos slowly stretched the margin until freshman forward Tom Folliard made it 30 with 4:33 left to play. The Tufts defense held up the huge lead until the buzzer sounded with Tufts on top 69-39.
"I think the key to shutting them out and sealing the game was our defense," junior forward Alex Orchowski said. "We haven't played defense like that in a while. We were able to stop their ball screens, and once we were able to stop that we were really able to shut them down in the offensive end."
In the first half alone, which ended with the Jumbos up 28-11, the Beacons committed 16 turnovers and had the ball stolen 11 times. Meanwhile, the Jumbos' defense held the Beacons to just 5-for-19 shooting in the period.
Neither Tufts nor UMass-Boston looked any different after the intermission. Seemingly rattled by Tufts' aggressive defense, the visitors gave up the ball another six times and had it stolen on three occasions for 11 more free points.
"We played good team defense for two halves," Galvin said of the win. "It was nice to see everyone contribute."
The Jumbos refused to play down to UMass-Boston, and played one of their best and most consistent games yet on both sides of the ball. They shot a solid 45 percent, had three different players with at least six rebounds and received points from all 12 players who played. Tufts' men's basketball delivered and stayed out of foul trouble, with Orchowski and sophomore center Matt Lanchantin both chipping in 12 points with their six rebounds. Tri-captain forward James Long, a junior, completed the rebounding trio with six of his own.
"I think some people that came off the bench brought a lot of energy," Orchowski said. "And there was really no gap from the bench to the kids on the floor … everyone was just able to play good defense."
On Friday, Tufts will look to continue this momentum with a game against Amherst, the only undefeated team left in the NESCAC, trying for another thrilling upset like their 69-68 win at home last year.
Looking beyond a potentially conference-rattling win over Amherst, a battle with NESCAC 2-3 Trinity awaits on Saturday. The Beacons' two conference losses have come to Wesleyan and Bowdoin,two teams the Jumbos have already put away. Barring some mental fatigue over a potential Friday night thriller with Amherst, a focused Tufts squad should have no problem handling Trinity and solidifying its place above the Beacons in the standings.
A 2-0 weekend will clinch a tournament spot, which has eluded the Jumbos since 2006. Yet a loss to Trinity could put that spot in jeopardy and make any chance of hosting a playoff game as one of the conference's top four seeds doubtful.
"We are looking to keep things rolling," Galvin said. "If we can play great D for forty minutes we will put ourselves in a position to come back with some wins. … We want to get that home playoff game."
