Tufts men’s basketball entered the NCAA Men's Division III Basketball Championship on Friday, facing Yeshiva University.
After a quick basket made by Yeshiva, Tufts wasted no time in creating a substantial lead to work with. There was no catching them, and by the end of the game, the score was 83–66, moving the Jumbos into the second round of the tournament.
The very next day in the second round, they faced the University of Redlands, which tied for No. 1 in their conference heading into the playoffs, and the team knew that their opponent was not going to disappear at any point during the match.
"It was a quick turnaround with the Yeshiva game being a day before the game, but we knew they had a full court press and liked to get out in transition," junior forward Scott Gyimesi wrote in an email to the Daily, emphasizing that despite the short rest period, they knew the game plan that Redlands would attempt to impose.
In the first half of the game, the Jumbos created a healthy lead against the Bulldogs. With good control of pace and execution, Tufts led 37–25 after 20 minutes of play.
But as expected, the Redlands team was far from giving up on the game. The Jumbos held their lead to 10 points in back-and-forth exchanges well through 10 minutes of the second half, continuing to capitalize on scoring opportunities. Redlands just would not go away, and despite the 10-point lead, it meant that when Tufts scored, so did Redlands.
At the eight-minute mark, a switch flipped, and the Redlands squad closed the gap ever so slightly. Despite the force of the Bulldogs, the Jumbos held strong in their lead, continuing to play offensively.
“Throughout the season, I think we’ve done a great job of using all of our weapons on the offensive end,” Gyimesi wrote. The Jumbos were 22–6 in the regular season, consistently putting up scoring totals above 80, and this game looked no different, despite the added pressure.
With less than a minute left to play and the Jumbos up by just two, the Bulldogs went to the free-throw line and made one of two to make it a 1-point game and give the Jumbos the ball back with 42 seconds on the game clock.
At the 10-second mark, junior guard James Morakis sank a clutch shot in the paint to give Tufts a 3-point lead with the last few seconds of the game rapidly winding down.
Perhaps the name is fitting, but in somewhat of an absolute miracle, Redlands guard Chozen Amadi sank a deep 3-pointer with one second left to tie the game — Tufts would be taken into overtime.
From there, it seemed a blur of events for the next five minutes of play.
After Redlands scored first in overtime, Gyimesi would be the first Tufts player to score in overtime, tying it back up all in just about one minute.
The Bulldogs began gaining momentum, pulling away from the Jumbos that had maintained their lead for so long. It now felt as though it was slipping away. The ’Bos had other plans though.
With less than two minutes left and the score at 92–86 with Redlands leading, Tufts began their steady comeback. The box score was filled with points in the clutch by Morakis, who never let the game speed up on him, no matter the situation. After two made free throws from Morakis, Redlands would miss both of their next free throw opportunities, opening the door for Tufts.
Morakis was brought back to the line with the score at 93–91, with Redlands in the lead, and 15 seconds left on the game clock. Naturally, Morakis sank both to tie the game; all that was left was one defensive stop opportunity, and a second overtime would be forced.
Unfortunately, it wasn’t in the cards that night, and Redlands guard Omari Ferguson sped past the defense to sink a layup and leave no time for the Tufts team to retaliate. The final score: 95–93 with a Redlands win.
Reflecting on the game, Gyimesi wrote, “We battled and fought until the end,” and despite the outcome, he added “I’m proud of our group.” The box score surely doesn’t show it all, but a battle to the very last moment of overtime is most definitely an image of grit and determination by the Jumbos squad.
The loss in the second round of the NCAA Division III tournament marks the end of what has been the final season for several seniors on Tufts men’s basketball. “To be honest, the feeling of the season ending is a tough one,” Gyimesi reflected. “The seniors are as connected to a group as I’ve ever been a part of and we will definitely miss those guys in the future.” Playing an integral role this season, Gyimesi added more on the heartfelt emotions of a season that seemed just a hair too short.
Luckily for Gyimesi himself and several other teammates, this won’t be his last season as a Jumbo, and despite losing a great cohort of seniors, he is sure that they will be back as strong as ever.
Looking to the season ahead, Gyimesi hammered home the importance of the little things — discipline, accountability and attacking each day. “How we approach the little things is what ultimately lead to championships,” he wrote, and each little improvement will bring them closer to the ultimate goal.
The end of the season for Jumbo basketball may not have ended with a dogpile and a big trophy, but there is no doubt that their season was filled with triumph, and they truly did fight until the very end, which gave them a chance at every point in that final match.
The rising senior leaders are hungry to go even further during next year’s playoff journey; however, until then, one must give a massive congratulations to the 2024–25 Tufts men’s basketball team on an outstanding season and incredible performance in their final game of the year.
Review the postseason through the lens of Daily photographers here.
