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Amherst turns near misses into championship run
Lord Jeffs’ defensive effort erases memories of previous semifinal stumbles
The NCAA News
Lord Jeffs’ defensive effort erases memories of previous semifinal stumbles
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The NCAA News
For two of the last three years, Amherst has knocked on the door at the Division III Men’s Basketball Championship, only to be denied the program’s first national title by losing twice in the semifinals.
The Lord Jeffs overcame their past disappointments by downing Wooster in the national semis this time around, then cruised to a 80-67 championship-game victory over defending champion Virginia Wesleyan in Springfield, Massachusetts, March 17.
While the celebration took place after the final, jumping the hurdle in the semifinals was key to the championship run.
“There’s a big difference between waking up Saturday morning knowing you’re playing in a consolation game and waking up knowing you’re playing for a championship,” Amherst senior Dan Wheeler told the Associated Press. “It’s a lot easier to get fired up and get focused.”
Wheeler and his teammates also made coach David Hixon’s 550th win career win more memorable.
The Lord Jeffs used a balanced scoring attack to keep Virginia Wesleyan from repeating as national champions.
Andrew Olson, the most outstanding player in the tournament, led Amherst with 15 points and five assists. Brian Baskauskas added 14 points, and Wheeler (13), Tim McLaughlin (12) and Kevin Hopkins (12) reached double figures in scoring.
While the offense was efficient, Hixon thought his team was even better on the other end of the court, where it limited Virginia Wesleyan to 41.7 percent shooting from the field.
“We did an unbelievable job defensively,” said Hixon, whose team finished 30-2.
All of the Lord Jeffs’ victories in the tournament were by double digits with the exception of the semifinal win over Wooster.
Virginia Wesleyan, 28-5, had trouble establishing any flow on the offensive end, which led to an uphill climb for most of the game.
The Marlins, who won their first national title in 2006, trailed, 39-28, at halftime and never cut the deficit below 10 points over the last 20 minutes.
“I thought we were just out of sync,” Virginia Wesleyan coach Dave Macedo said. “We couldn’t get in a rhythm at times.”
Ton Ton Balenga, who hit the winning shot with two seconds remaining in the 2006 title game, led the Marlins with 19 points, and Brandon Adair contributed 17.
Amherst’s advantage grew as high as 20 points in the second half, with the last being a 68-48 margin with 7:28 left on the clock.
Sectionals
At Wis.-Stevens Point — Washington-St. Louis 78, Wis.-Stevens Point 66; Hope 89, Carroll 77; Washington-St. Louis 58, Hope 55.
At Va. Weselyan — Guilford 129, Lincoln (Pa.) 128 (3 ot); Va. Wesleyan 81, Mississippi Col. 55; Va. Wesleyan 81, Guilford 71.
At Amherst — Amherst 97, Stevens Inst. 74; Rhode Island Col. 75, Keene St. 73; Amherst 81, Rhode Island Col. 69.
At St. John Fisher — Brockport St. 105, St. John Fisher 91; Wooster 83, John Carroll 73; Wooster 94, Brockport St. 87.
Semifinals
Va. Wesleyan 67, Washington-St. Louis 65
Va. Wesleyan: Ton Ton Balenga 2-5, 5-6, 3, 10; Thomas Sumpter 0-2, 0-0, 1, 0; Terrell Dixon 4-7, 0-0, 1, 9; Brandon Adair 12-12, 1-3, 6, 25; Tyler Fantin 3-8, 2-2, 5, 10; D’Juan Tucker 1-5, 1-2, 3, 4; T.J. Williams 0-0, 0-0, 0, 0; Stephen Fields 3-5, 2-3, 2, 9; Norman Hassell 0-2, 0-0, 0, 0. Totals: 25-46, 11-16, 21, 67.
Washington-St. Louis: Sean Wallis 5-10, 5-6, 2, 17; Tyler Nading 4-5, 0-0, 3, 8; Nick Nikitas 3-7, 2-2, 0, 8; Aaron Thompson 1-2, 2,2 2, 5; Troy Ruths 8-17, 5-5, 7, 21; Ray Wagner 0-1, 0-0, 0, 0; Phil Syvertsen 0-0, 0-0, 0, 0; Cameron Smith 0-0, 0-0, 0, 0; Zach Kelly 2-3, 1-2, 5, 6. Totals: 23-45, 15-17, 21, 65.
Halftime: Washington-St. Louis 28, Va. Wesleyan 25. Three-point field goals: Va. Wesleyan 6-19 (Fantin 2-5, Fields 1-2, Dixon 1-3, Balenga 1-3, Tucker 1-4, Hassell 0-2); Washington-St. Louis 4-9 (Wallis 2-5, Thompson 1-1, Kelly 1-1, Nikitas 0-2). Officials: Curt Seter, Roland Simmons, Gary Wild.
Amherst 67, Wooster 60
Wooster: Brandon Johnson 1-5, 3-5, 7, 5; James Cooper 4-10, 1-2, 3, 12; Andy Van Horn 2-4, 1-1, 2, 6; Tom Port 3-9, 6-7, 4, 13; Evan Will 1-1, 0-0, 1, 2; Marty Bidwell 0-2, 0-0, 3, 0; Devin Fulk 1-4, 0-0, 3, 2; Tim Vandervaart 9-10, 2-2, 4, 20. Totals: 21-45, 13-17, 30, 60.
Amherst: Andrew Olson 4-11, 6-6, 6, 15; Tim McLaughlin 6-12, 0-1, 8, 16; Brian Baskauskas 2-4, 0-1, 8, 16; Dan O’Shea 1-2, 2-2, 4, 4; Dan Wheeler 5-13, 0-4, 3, 11; Mike Salerno 0-0, 0-0, 3, 0; Fletcher Walters 1-2, 0-0, 1, 3; Kevin Hopkins 3-8, 3-3, 1, 9; Bandon Jones 0-1, 0-0, 1, 0. Totals: 22-53, 14-20, 32, 67.
Halftime: Amherst 39, Wooster 25; Three-point field goals: Wooster 5-19 (Cooper 3-7, Van Horn 1-1, Port 1-6, Bidwell 0-1, Fulk 0-2, Johnson 0-2); Amherst 9-23 (McLaughlin 4-7, Baskauskas 2-3, Walters 1-1, Wheeler 1-6, Olson 1-6). Officials: David Dence, Todd Sweeney, Carl Luciano.
Third-place game
Washington-St. Louis 92, Wooster 84
Wooster: Brandon Johnson 7-15, 1-1, 2, 15; Cooper 2-11, 0-0, 0, 5; Van Horn 3-3, 4-5, 2, 11; Tom Port 4-17, 1-3, 2, 13; Time Vandervaart 8-13, 0-1, 11, 16; Marty Bidwell 2-4, 0-0, 6, 4; Devin Fulk 5-11, 0-0, 10, 13; Evan Will 2-4, 2-4, 3, 7. Totals: 33-78, 8-14, 39, 84.
Washington-St. Louis: Sean Wallis 6-13, 8-9, 4, 21; Tyler Nading 8-11, 5-6, 9, 22; Nick Nikitas 1-3, 2-2, 2, 4; Aaron Thompson 4-7, 4-4, 4, 16; Troy Ruths 5-12, 7-8, 8, 17; Moss Schermerhorn 0-1, 0-0, 1, 0; Ray Wagner 0-1, 0-0, 0, 0, Phil Syvertsen 0-1, 0-0, 0, 0; Cameron Smith 4-7, 1-1, 3, 10; Cameron Williams 0-0, 0-0, 0, 0; Zach Kelly 1-3, 0-2, 4, 2; Jonathan Breshears 0-0, 0-0, 0, 0. Totals: 29-59, 27-32, 37, 92.
Halftime: Wooster 35, Washington-St. Louis 34; Three-point field goals: Wooster 10-28 (Port 4-12, Fulk 3-5, Van Horn 1-1, Will 1-2, Cooper 1-4, Bidwell 0-1, Johnson 0-3); Washington-St. Louis 7-23 (Thompson 4-7, Nading 1-2, Smith 1-3, Wallis 1-6, Kelly 0-1, Wagner 0-1, Syvertsen 0-1, Nikitas 0-2). Officials: Ted Kessler, Johnny Pearson, Craig Murley.
Championship game
Amherst 80, Va. Wesleyan 67
Amherst: Andrew Olson 3-8, 7-8, 1, 15; Time McLaughlin 5-10, 1-1, 5, 12; Brian Baskauskas 6-9, 2-2, 6, 14; Dan O’Shea 0-1, 0-0, 1, 0; Dan Wheeler 4-7, 4-4, 7, 13; Mike Salerno 0-0, 0-0, 1, 0; Fletcher Walters 2-4, 2-2, 0, 7; Kevin Hopkins 3-6, 6-7, 5, 12; Brandon Jones 0-5, 7-8, 3, 7. Totals: 23-50, 29-32, 30, 80.
Va. Wesleyan: Thomas Sumpter 2-6, 2-2, 5, 6; Terrell Dixon 2-6, 2-2, 2, 8; Ton Ton Balenga 5-12, 7-7, 2, 19; Brandon Adair 7-9, 3-11, 5, 17; Tyler Fantin 1-6, 2-2, 8, 4; D’Juan Tucker 0-2, 1-2, 2, 1; Rodney Young 0-1, 2-2, 2, 2; Stephen Fields 2-5, 3-5, 2, 8; Norman Hassell 0-0, 0-0, 0, 0; Travis Klink 1-1, 0-0, 0, 2. Totals: 20-48, 22-33, 29, 67.
Halftime: Amherst 39, Va. Wesleyan 28; Three-point field goals: Amherst 5-14 (Olson 2-4, Wheeler 1-2, Walters 1-3, McLaughlin 1-3, Baskauskas 0-2); Va. Wesleyan 5-12 (Dixon 2-4, Balenga 2-7, Fields 1-1,). Officials: Carl Gerlitos, Gregg Durich, Jeff Benedict.
The Lord Jeffs overcame their past disappointments by downing Wooster in the national semis this time around, then cruised to a 80-67 championship-game victory over defending champion Virginia Wesleyan in Springfield, Massachusetts, March 17.
While the celebration took place after the final, jumping the hurdle in the semifinals was key to the championship run.
“There’s a big difference between waking up Saturday morning knowing you’re playing in a consolation game and waking up knowing you’re playing for a championship,” Amherst senior Dan Wheeler told the Associated Press. “It’s a lot easier to get fired up and get focused.”
Wheeler and his teammates also made coach David Hixon’s 550th win career win more memorable.
The Lord Jeffs used a balanced scoring attack to keep Virginia Wesleyan from repeating as national champions.
Andrew Olson, the most outstanding player in the tournament, led Amherst with 15 points and five assists. Brian Baskauskas added 14 points, and Wheeler (13), Tim McLaughlin (12) and Kevin Hopkins (12) reached double figures in scoring.
While the offense was efficient, Hixon thought his team was even better on the other end of the court, where it limited Virginia Wesleyan to 41.7 percent shooting from the field.
“We did an unbelievable job defensively,” said Hixon, whose team finished 30-2.
All of the Lord Jeffs’ victories in the tournament were by double digits with the exception of the semifinal win over Wooster.
Virginia Wesleyan, 28-5, had trouble establishing any flow on the offensive end, which led to an uphill climb for most of the game.
The Marlins, who won their first national title in 2006, trailed, 39-28, at halftime and never cut the deficit below 10 points over the last 20 minutes.
“I thought we were just out of sync,” Virginia Wesleyan coach Dave Macedo said. “We couldn’t get in a rhythm at times.”
Ton Ton Balenga, who hit the winning shot with two seconds remaining in the 2006 title game, led the Marlins with 19 points, and Brandon Adair contributed 17.
Amherst’s advantage grew as high as 20 points in the second half, with the last being a 68-48 margin with 7:28 left on the clock.
Sectionals
At Wis.-Stevens Point — Washington-St. Louis 78, Wis.-Stevens Point 66; Hope 89, Carroll 77; Washington-St. Louis 58, Hope 55.
At Va. Weselyan — Guilford 129, Lincoln (Pa.) 128 (3 ot); Va. Wesleyan 81, Mississippi Col. 55; Va. Wesleyan 81, Guilford 71.
At Amherst — Amherst 97, Stevens Inst. 74; Rhode Island Col. 75, Keene St. 73; Amherst 81, Rhode Island Col. 69.
At St. John Fisher — Brockport St. 105, St. John Fisher 91; Wooster 83, John Carroll 73; Wooster 94, Brockport St. 87.
Semifinals
Va. Wesleyan 67, Washington-St. Louis 65
Va. Wesleyan: Ton Ton Balenga 2-5, 5-6, 3, 10; Thomas Sumpter 0-2, 0-0, 1, 0; Terrell Dixon 4-7, 0-0, 1, 9; Brandon Adair 12-12, 1-3, 6, 25; Tyler Fantin 3-8, 2-2, 5, 10; D’Juan Tucker 1-5, 1-2, 3, 4; T.J. Williams 0-0, 0-0, 0, 0; Stephen Fields 3-5, 2-3, 2, 9; Norman Hassell 0-2, 0-0, 0, 0. Totals: 25-46, 11-16, 21, 67.
Washington-St. Louis: Sean Wallis 5-10, 5-6, 2, 17; Tyler Nading 4-5, 0-0, 3, 8; Nick Nikitas 3-7, 2-2, 0, 8; Aaron Thompson 1-2, 2,2 2, 5; Troy Ruths 8-17, 5-5, 7, 21; Ray Wagner 0-1, 0-0, 0, 0; Phil Syvertsen 0-0, 0-0, 0, 0; Cameron Smith 0-0, 0-0, 0, 0; Zach Kelly 2-3, 1-2, 5, 6. Totals: 23-45, 15-17, 21, 65.
Halftime: Washington-St. Louis 28, Va. Wesleyan 25. Three-point field goals: Va. Wesleyan 6-19 (Fantin 2-5, Fields 1-2, Dixon 1-3, Balenga 1-3, Tucker 1-4, Hassell 0-2); Washington-St. Louis 4-9 (Wallis 2-5, Thompson 1-1, Kelly 1-1, Nikitas 0-2). Officials: Curt Seter, Roland Simmons, Gary Wild.
Amherst 67, Wooster 60
Wooster: Brandon Johnson 1-5, 3-5, 7, 5; James Cooper 4-10, 1-2, 3, 12; Andy Van Horn 2-4, 1-1, 2, 6; Tom Port 3-9, 6-7, 4, 13; Evan Will 1-1, 0-0, 1, 2; Marty Bidwell 0-2, 0-0, 3, 0; Devin Fulk 1-4, 0-0, 3, 2; Tim Vandervaart 9-10, 2-2, 4, 20. Totals: 21-45, 13-17, 30, 60.
Amherst: Andrew Olson 4-11, 6-6, 6, 15; Tim McLaughlin 6-12, 0-1, 8, 16; Brian Baskauskas 2-4, 0-1, 8, 16; Dan O’Shea 1-2, 2-2, 4, 4; Dan Wheeler 5-13, 0-4, 3, 11; Mike Salerno 0-0, 0-0, 3, 0; Fletcher Walters 1-2, 0-0, 1, 3; Kevin Hopkins 3-8, 3-3, 1, 9; Bandon Jones 0-1, 0-0, 1, 0. Totals: 22-53, 14-20, 32, 67.
Halftime: Amherst 39, Wooster 25; Three-point field goals: Wooster 5-19 (Cooper 3-7, Van Horn 1-1, Port 1-6, Bidwell 0-1, Fulk 0-2, Johnson 0-2); Amherst 9-23 (McLaughlin 4-7, Baskauskas 2-3, Walters 1-1, Wheeler 1-6, Olson 1-6). Officials: David Dence, Todd Sweeney, Carl Luciano.
Third-place game
Washington-St. Louis 92, Wooster 84
Wooster: Brandon Johnson 7-15, 1-1, 2, 15; Cooper 2-11, 0-0, 0, 5; Van Horn 3-3, 4-5, 2, 11; Tom Port 4-17, 1-3, 2, 13; Time Vandervaart 8-13, 0-1, 11, 16; Marty Bidwell 2-4, 0-0, 6, 4; Devin Fulk 5-11, 0-0, 10, 13; Evan Will 2-4, 2-4, 3, 7. Totals: 33-78, 8-14, 39, 84.
Washington-St. Louis: Sean Wallis 6-13, 8-9, 4, 21; Tyler Nading 8-11, 5-6, 9, 22; Nick Nikitas 1-3, 2-2, 2, 4; Aaron Thompson 4-7, 4-4, 4, 16; Troy Ruths 5-12, 7-8, 8, 17; Moss Schermerhorn 0-1, 0-0, 1, 0; Ray Wagner 0-1, 0-0, 0, 0, Phil Syvertsen 0-1, 0-0, 0, 0; Cameron Smith 4-7, 1-1, 3, 10; Cameron Williams 0-0, 0-0, 0, 0; Zach Kelly 1-3, 0-2, 4, 2; Jonathan Breshears 0-0, 0-0, 0, 0. Totals: 29-59, 27-32, 37, 92.
Halftime: Wooster 35, Washington-St. Louis 34; Three-point field goals: Wooster 10-28 (Port 4-12, Fulk 3-5, Van Horn 1-1, Will 1-2, Cooper 1-4, Bidwell 0-1, Johnson 0-3); Washington-St. Louis 7-23 (Thompson 4-7, Nading 1-2, Smith 1-3, Wallis 1-6, Kelly 0-1, Wagner 0-1, Syvertsen 0-1, Nikitas 0-2). Officials: Ted Kessler, Johnny Pearson, Craig Murley.
Championship game
Amherst 80, Va. Wesleyan 67
Amherst: Andrew Olson 3-8, 7-8, 1, 15; Time McLaughlin 5-10, 1-1, 5, 12; Brian Baskauskas 6-9, 2-2, 6, 14; Dan O’Shea 0-1, 0-0, 1, 0; Dan Wheeler 4-7, 4-4, 7, 13; Mike Salerno 0-0, 0-0, 1, 0; Fletcher Walters 2-4, 2-2, 0, 7; Kevin Hopkins 3-6, 6-7, 5, 12; Brandon Jones 0-5, 7-8, 3, 7. Totals: 23-50, 29-32, 30, 80.
Va. Wesleyan: Thomas Sumpter 2-6, 2-2, 5, 6; Terrell Dixon 2-6, 2-2, 2, 8; Ton Ton Balenga 5-12, 7-7, 2, 19; Brandon Adair 7-9, 3-11, 5, 17; Tyler Fantin 1-6, 2-2, 8, 4; D’Juan Tucker 0-2, 1-2, 2, 1; Rodney Young 0-1, 2-2, 2, 2; Stephen Fields 2-5, 3-5, 2, 8; Norman Hassell 0-0, 0-0, 0, 0; Travis Klink 1-1, 0-0, 0, 2. Totals: 20-48, 22-33, 29, 67.
Halftime: Amherst 39, Va. Wesleyan 28; Three-point field goals: Amherst 5-14 (Olson 2-4, Wheeler 1-2, Walters 1-3, McLaughlin 1-3, Baskauskas 0-2); Va. Wesleyan 5-12 (Dixon 2-4, Balenga 2-7, Fields 1-1,). Officials: Carl Gerlitos, Gregg Durich, Jeff Benedict.
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