MEDFORD, MA (February 21, 2024) -- The Tufts University men's basketball team, receiving votes in the most recent D3hoops.com Top 25 poll, will head to Williamstown, Massachusetts this weekend to take part in the 2024 New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) semifinals at Williams College. Tufts will take on No. 4 Trinity College, the No. 2 seed in the tournament, while top-seed and No. 20 Williams College will take on bitter rival No. 6 seed Amherst College in the other semifinals.
The Jumbos (19-6) are coming off a 66-46 win over No. 5 seed Middlebury College in Cousens Gymnasium last Saturday, as the Tufts' defense allowed just 18 points in the second half in rolling past the Panthers. Sophomores
Scott Gyimesi and
James Morakis each had 15 points in the win for the Jumbos, while senior
Casey McLaren and first-year
Jon Medley each helped limit Panther's leading scorer Noah Osher to just 14 points on 3-of-11 shooting.
Game Details
Opponent: vs. No. 4 Trinity College (24-1, 9-1 NESCAC)
Date: Saturday, February 24, 2024
Time: 4:30 p.m.
Location: Williamstown, Mass. - Chandler Gymnasium
Tickets: $8 for adults, $5 for seniors, $3 for students/children 3 and older, while children under 2 are free
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Tufts vs. Trinity Series
Tufts and Trinity have had a competitive series dating back to 1979, as the Bantams hold a slight 25-22 series edge while earning the season's battle back on February 10, 82-66. Trinity held the Jumbos to a season-low 20 points in the first half, and fended off a second-half rally to earn the win. The Jumbos have only played once on a neutral court, as the Jumbos knocked off the Bantams 88-75 in overtime back in the NESCAC semifinals in 2006. The Jumbos are 2-3 against Trinity in the NESCAC Tournament all time, but both wins came in the NESCAC semifinals including a win in 2020 en route to Tufts' first-ever conference crown.
A Look At The Jumbos (19-6)
Tufts has had a strong season, as the Jumbos look for their 12th 20-win season all-time and the fifth since 2015-16. The Jumbos have been towards the top of the statistical standings, as the Jumbos are fourth in the NESCAC in scoring offense with 74.2 points per game. Their scoring margin ranks second in the NESCAC at +10.0, holding squads to just 64.2 points per game on average. Tufts is second in both field goal percentage for and against, and ranks third in rebounding margin at +6.9.
Sophomore
Scott Gyimesi is the only player in the NESCAC averaging a double-double with 13.6 points and 11.1 rebounds per contest, as he ranks No. 5 in the country in double-doubles with 17 on the season. Gyimesi also lead the conference in field goal percentage with a 59.2 percent clip, while ranking fourth in total field goals with 157. Junior
Khai Champion is 16th in the conference in scoring with 11.5 points per game, leading the team in three-point makes with 41. Sophomore
James Morakis has also poured in 11 points per game, adding 22 three-point makes.
Senior
Jay Dieterle leads the team with 84 assists, adding 9.4 scoring per game, shooting a team-best 92.7 percent from the free throw line. Sophomore
Joshua Bernstein has also posted 8.8 points and 7.2 rebounds per game, while his 47 blocks rank third in the NESCAC.
Head coach
Brandon Linton is in his third season with the Jumbos, as he has gone 52-24 at the helm of the Jumbos. Linton has posted a .672 winning percentage in his career, as he also posted a 26-14 mark at Nichols College for two season before coming to Tufts. Linton is looking for his third 20-win season in five years as a head coach Saturday.
A Look At The Bantams (24-1)
Trinity College comes into the weekend with just loss on their resume this season, falling to NESCAC Tournament host Williams College by a point back on February 2. The Bantams are statistically one of the best teams in the country, ranking first our of all 412 Division III schools in scoring margin at 22.4 points. Trinity ranks third in the nation in scoring defense, allowing just 55.6 points per game while also ranking third in FG percentage defense at 36.5 percent against.
The Bantams are sixth in the country in assist/turnover ratio at 1.56, and also are ninth in rebounding margin at +9.1. Individually, Ben Callahan-Gold ranks in the top 15 nationally in three-point attempts (205), makes (80) and makes per game (3.20), while Dana Smith is eighth in the country in assist/turnover ratio at 3.28. Henry Vetter is second to Callahan-Gold's 17.2 points per game with 14.2 points a night, while Jarrel Okorougo is third on the team with 11.0 points per game on 53.5.
Will Dorion also has added 6.0 points per game for the Bantams, who have won every game this season except two by double-digits, both against Wesleyan. Head coach James Cosgrove is in his 13th season with the Bantams, going 211-123 all-time for Trinity. Cosgrove also was the head coach at Endicott from 1997-2002, while coaching eight seasons at Adelphi University, going 186-87 at the Division II school. Trinity is looking for its second all-time NESCAC title, winning its first back in 2008.
Williams vs. Amherst
One of the most storied rivalries in all of collegiate basketball gets another chapter on Saturday, as the Mammoths comes to Chandler Gym to take on the Ephs. The two schools have won 13 of the NESCAC's 22 all-time conference crowns led by Amherst's eight. Amherst is 41-13 all-time in the NESCAC Tournament, while Williams is 28-17 as the only school to make the NESCAC Tournament every year it has been contested. These two schools have met 12 previous times in the NESCAC Tournament, with Amherst holding a 7-5 edge including five times in the title game. These two teams will be playing their 236th all-time meeting Saturday.
Williams is led offensively by Alex Lee and his 11.2 points per game this season, while Brandon Roughley and Nate Karren have added 10.2 points per game. Amherst is paced by the 11.3 points from Chris Hammond, with Charlie Randall has poured in 10 points per game. Will Scherer also leads the conference in blocks with 56, and has added 10.4 rebounds per game as well.
Tufts knocked off Williams earlier this season, handing the Ephs their lone NESCAC loss, while the Jumbos fell on the road at Amherst.
The winner of Tufts and Trinity will play the Amherst/Williams winner Sunday at noon in the title game.
--JUMBOS--
