Box Score
MEDFORD – With the game tied at 73 with 3:58 seconds left, the Amherst men's basketball team scored 12 unanswered points to earn a 86-73 win over the Tufts men's basketball team in Elite Eight NCAA Tournament action in Cousens Gym on Saturday evening. With the win the Purple and White advance to the NCAA Tournament Final Four in Salem, Virginia March 18 and 19.
Amherst topped Babson on Friday night in Medford to advance to face the Jumbos, while Tufts knocked off Johnson and Wales to move on to face Amherst in the Elite Eight. With the win the Purple and White improve to 26-5 on the season. The Jumbos one of their best seasons in program history come to an end with a 23-7 mark.
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Amherst jumped out to an early lead and would maintain that lead for the entire first half. Connor Green made a layup and nailed the free throw for the three-point play with 13:34 remaining in the first half to give the Purple and White a five point advantage. But junior tri-captain Tom Palleschi nailed a jumper to cut the lead to three with 12:21 on the clock and the Jumbos and Amherst would trade points for the next couple minutes.
With 10:19 remaining in the half, Eric Conklin made a layup and added a free throw for the three-point play to give the Purple and White a ten point advantage, and added two free throws just a couple minutes later to push the lead to 12, 24-12 in Amherst's advantage. The Purple and White would maintain a double-digit lead until just over five minutes remaining in the half.
Senior tri-captain Stephen Haladyna drained a three with 3:35 left in the half to cut the Jumbos deficit to six and Palleschi added two points about two minutes later to bring the Jumbos within four. Jeff Racy put Amherst ahead by seven with a three with 20 seconds left in the half, but junior Tarik Smith made two free throws with three seconds left in the half to bring the Jumbos within five (40-35) heading into halftime.
The Jumbos came out of halftime on fire, and with 14:58 left in the game sophomore Ben Engvall picked up a steal and sunk a three to give the Jumbos a one-point advantage, 49-48. Michael Riopel drained a three on the Purple and White's next possession to take the lead back, but then Palleschi's layup with 13:49 left in the game gave the Jumbos the advantage again. The home team would use the next two minutes to build a lead and with 11:15 left in the game the Jumbos had a seven-point advantage, 62-55.
Amherst's Johnny McCarthy made a three to bring Amherst within four, and then Conklin added two points to cut the lead to two. After a layup by Engvall, the Purple and White got another three from Green and Green's layup about a minute and a half later gave the Purple and White the lead, 67-66 with 7:17 left in the game.
Tufts and Amherst would trade points for the next couple minutes, and with 3:58 left on the clock Palleschi made one from downtown to tie the game at 73. But, Amherst scored the next 12 points, with Riopel adding three and McCarthy scoring four to secure the 86-73 win.
Green was the point leader for the Purple and White, finishing with 25 points and six rebounds. McCarthy had 15 points with nine boards and Riopel finished with 12 points and three steals for the Purple and White.
The Jumbos were led by 20 points from both Haladyna and Palleschi. Palleschi added six rebounds and two blocks to his night, while Haladyna finished with eight boards. Smith had 14 points and five assists for the Jumbos. Engvall added nine points off the bench and senior tri-captain Ryan Spadaford turned in seven points and 11 rebounds.
Amherst now awaits the winner of the Benedictine and Alma game, who they will face off with on March 18 in Final Four play.
Game Photos by Alonso Nichols / Tufts
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