Men’s basketball continues its winning streak, collecting three more conference victories this past week. The Jumbos earned a win on the road against Colby 61–53 on Tuesday night and then swept their NESCAC weekend games against Williams 81–66 and Middlebury 81–73. The team’s record now stands at 13–9 overall and 8–2 in the NESCAC, leaving them securely positioned second in the conference heading into playoffs next weekend.
The Jumbo matchup with the Colby Mules got rescheduled to a Tuesday night. Heading up to Maine provided a challenge for the Jumbos, as not only did it take them out of their typical schedule’s weekend routine, they also faced off against competitors seeking revenge. Senior center Luke Rodgers said this added to the challenges of their contest against Colby.
“Two years ago, when we won the NESCAC tournament, we beat Colby in the finals so we knew that it was going to be a big game,” Rodgers said. “Definitely it felt like we had a bit of a target on our backs going into that game, so it was one we really wanted to take care of. I think that it showed a lot about our team, being able to go up there and win on the road in not traditional circumstances.”
The team rose to the occasion, battling in a close contest and securing a key victory on the road. The first half saw many tie scores and lead changes, but in the second half the Jumbos secured the momentum and a small lead that they did not lose for the remainder of the game. Rodgers earned another double double, securing 14 points and 15 rebounds for the night. Junior guard Dylan Thoerner scored 14 points and recorded three steals as well.
Saturday’s game against Williams was Senior Day for the Jumbos. Accordingly, all five seniors made up the starting squad for the contest. Rodgers said it was a great experience.
“[Will Brady] and [Brennan Morris], those are two guys that were in my original class at Tufts and we were supposed to graduate in 2021, but we had taken a year off because we wanted to come back and we wanted one more shot at this. We wanted to play together. We knew we had some magic left in us.” Rodgers said. “The other seniors, [Eric DeBrine] and [Kieran Kindig], they’re two of my best friends. Getting to go out there and play with those guys who really put their heart and their soul into the team is really rewarding for all of us.”
Thoerner led the Jumbos in scoring once again with 19 for the day, followed by Rodgers and junior guard Tyler Aronson with 15 each. Defense proved particularly effective as the team held Williams’ second best scorer, sophomore guard Cole Prowitt-Smith to zero points for the afternoon. Coming off good Saturday momentum, the energy stayed on the side of Tufts for Sunday’s matchup against Middlebury. Aronson said keeping focus was essential to win back to back conference games.
“Usually on those back-to-back NESCAC games, Sunday games are mainly about effort and staying locked in on our scout,” Aronson said. “I thought that we were really well prepared, especially in all our NESCAC games over the past weekend. The coaching staff has been really great getting us ready to go. Having the effort and the scout prepared for us was great, and we ended up executing down the stretch against a pretty good team.”
For the majority of the first half, the Jumbos had a commanding lead, but Middlebury threatened this lead and tied the score in the second half, leaving the two teams battling back and forth for the lead for the remainder of the game. A combination of a cohesive, fast-paced offense and smart defense on the part of Tufts and three strong scorers for Middlebury kept the game close. Momentum decisively shifted in favor of Tufts when one of Middlebury’s leading scorers and big defensive presence, junior center Alex Sobel, fouled out in the second half. Thoerner, Rogers, Aronson and senior guard Will Brady led the team, all scoring in double digits and several reserves contributed for a solid team victory.
After securing the No. 2 seed, the Jumbos will face the winner of Bates and Trinity on Sunday, Feb. 20 in Cousens Gym for the second round of NESCAC playoffs.
