LEWISTON, Maine -- Wesleyan University received 22 points from Joe Edmonds, 18 from Jack Mackey and held Bates College to 15.4 percent shooting from three-point territory for a 66-59 win over the host Bobcats in a NESCAC Men's Basketball Championship quarterfinal game on Saturday in Alumni Gymnasium.
The Cardinals (17-8) avenged their 74-66 loss at Bates on Jan. 30, and advance to the semifinal round next weekend at Trinity College. Wesleyan will face the top-seeded Bantams (20-5) in the first semifinal next Saturday at 2pm, followed by second-seeded Bowdoin (18-7) taking on fifth-seeded Amherst (19-6) at 4pm.
It was the first loss in 13 home games for the Bobcats (19-6), who now have no choice but to wait for the NCAA selection committee to determine whether Bates is deserving of an at-large bid into the NESCAC Division III Men's Basketball Championship tournament. The NCAA's regional rankings this week have Bates ranked second in the Northeast Region, based on a 19-3 record against regional opponents (which has now dropped to 19-4) and the region's highest strength-of-schedule rating. Bates' fate may depend upon how many underdogs around the country are able to win their conference tournaments and snag automatic bids, crowding the at-large field.
Bates received a game-high 23 points and nine rebounds from junior Mike Boornazian (Portland, Conn.). Senior Graham Safford (Hampden, Maine) added 16 points and seven assists in the loss.
Edmonds scored 11 points and grabbed all seven of his rebounds in the second half. Joseph Kuo contributed nine points and six rebounds for Wesleyan, and Rashid Epps led the Cardinals with eight boards.
Mackey drilled three 3-pointers and Edmonds added another in the opening 6:45 of the first half for a 20-13 lead. Boornazian sank his second three of the half to close the gap to 20-16, but Wesleyan scored seven straight points with another Edmonds three and back-to-back two-point hoops by Mackey, for a 27-16 Wesleyan lead. Another three by Edmonds, followed by a Harry Rafferty trifecta, had Wesleyan enjoying a 33-20 lead with 3:24 to go in the half.Â
Safford drew a foul and sank two free throws to stem the bleeding and begin a 9-2 Bobcat run to close out the half. Boornazian drained his third three in the streak and senior Adam Philpott (Gloucester, Mass.) converted a layup, both on Safford assists, and Safford made a pair of free throws with 1.7 seconds left in the period, drawing Bates within six (35-29) at the break.
Mackey had 15 points at halftime, making 6-of-13 from the field and 3-of-8 from beyond the arc. Edmonds had 11 points on 3-of-4 shooting, including 3-of-3 from behind the arc. Wesleyan made 7-of-13 3-pointers in the period (53.8%) compared to 3-of-17 (17.6%) for Bates. Boornazian kept the Bobcats afloat in the opening period, scoring 13 points with 3-of-6 three-point shooting and grabbing eight boards, three on the offensive glass.
Bates came out hot in the second half, extending the run to 18-2 with nine unanswered points that made it 38-35 in Bates' favor, the Bobcats' first lead since 6-5. Boornazian's pullup jumper opened second-half scoring, followed by a Safford-assisted dunk by sophomore Marcus Delpeche (Wilmington, Del.), a Safford layup and a Safford-assisted corner three by senior Billy Selmon (Atlanta, Ga.) for the 38-35 lead, prompting Wesleyan's second timeout in the early going of the period.
After both teams exchanged misses, Edmonds used a screen at the top of the arc to get a clean look at a three and made it, pulling the Cardinals even at 38-38. With 13:11 left, Edmonds tipped in a missed three by Mackey. Bates' Selmon missed a pair of free throws at the other end, and Wesleyan's Davis nailed a three for a 44-40 Cardinal lead.
Bates called timeout after a Safford layup closed it to 44-42, but Davis was fouled in the act of shooting a three, putting him at the line for three free throws. Bates got a break with Davis missing all three, and Boornazian hit a jumper at the elbow to tie the game up again at 44-44.
An Edmonds three gave Wesleyan a five-point lead back at 49-44, but Bates tied it at 49-49, with 4:45 to go, on another Boornazian jumper and a layup by sophomore Malcolm Delpeche (Wilmington, Del.), set up by a penetration and dish by Selmon.
After a Wesleyan timeout, Rafferty found Mackey open in the corner for a three, giving the Cardinals a lead they would not relinquish at 52-49 with 4:23 left. Safford and Rafferty exchanged layups before Mackey set up a Kuo dunk to make it 56-51 with 2:16 left in regulation. Wesleyan came up with consecutive defensive stops, including a steal by Mackey that led directly to a fast-break layup and three-point play by Davis with 59 seconds left in the game, for a 59-51 Wesleyan lead. Bates was forced to foul the Cardinals the rest of the way, and they made 7-of-8 from the stripe in the final minute to preserve the lead.
Bates shot 1-for-9 from three-point territory in the second half to record a season-high for missed three-point attempts (22).
