Hopkins, Swarthmore Turn Up Classic
SWARTHMORE, Pa. -- After a slow offensive start, the Swarthmore and Johns Hopkins basketball teams gave the fans at Tarble Pavilion quite a show, using two overtime sessions to decide a Centennial Conference game Saturday afternoon.
Johns Hopkins junior guard Collin Kamm (Avon, N.J. / Saint Rose) hit a three-pointer from the corner with 24 seconds left in the second overtime, propelling the Blue Jays into the lead on their way to a 76-73 win over Swarthmore
The Garnet fall to 3-11 overall and 0-8 in the Centennial, while Johns Hopkins kept pace in the Conference playoff race by improving to 5-3 in the Centennial, 9-6 overall.
Garnet senior center Ian McCormick (Seattle, Wash. / University Prep) continued to propel the Swarthmore offense, tallying game-highs of 28 points, 12 rebounds and seven blocks. Garnet sophomore guard Matt Allen (Seattle, Wash. / Lakeside) added 11 points and a game-high five assists.
JHU sophomore guard Pat O’Connell (Baltimore, Mary. / Loyola Blakefield) led his team with 17 points while three others added 10 points apiece.
The fun got started mid-way through the second half. McCormick’s three-pointer with 9:31 to play in regulation put Swarthmore out front by five, 44-39, but a 14-6 Blue Jay run turned the game in the visitors favor.
JHU sophomore forward Andrew Farber-Miller (Charlottesville, Va. / St. Anne’s-Belfield) scored three consecutive baskets in the paint to put the Blue Jays out front, 53-47 with 2:20 left.
The Garnet refused to let Johns Hopkins go quietly. Allen fed McCormick for a lay-up and sophomore forward Matt Turner (Audubon, Pa. / Germantown Academy) made a free throw to get Swarthmore within three, 53-50, at 1:42.
Johns Hopkins looked to run the clock out and Swarthmore got whistled for two fouls, giving the Blue Jays more chances to bleed out the clock. The Garnet defense played sound defense over the next half-minute and forced a shot-clock violation.
Swarthmore head coach Lee Wimberly drew up a play to go for the tie in the ensuing timeout. Garnet junior forward Raul Ordonez (Miami, Fla. / Belen Jesuit) found Allen alone in the corner and the sophomore guard sank the tying triple over the out-stretched arm of a JHU defender. 21 seconds showed on the scoreboard and the score read 53-53.
Blue Jay guard Doug Polster (Bernardsville, N.J / Bernards) came free off a screen, but his jumper from just inside the arc glanced off the side of the rim.
Swarthmore, playing in its third overtime game of the season, built a five-point lead late in the first extra session. Unfortunately, five missed free throws in the first overtime proved to be the undoing. Baumgartner finished off a feed from Scott Weisenfeld (Chappaqua, N.Y. / Horace Greeley) with 11 seconds left to make the score 64-61 Swarthmore.
Johns Hopkins was forced to foul, yet the Garnet were unable to convert at the line. Weisenfeld raced up court with the outlet pass, got one dribble inside the arc and then steppped back and sank a three-pointer to tie the game at 64-all with 0.7 seconds on the clock. A desperation heave by Swarthmore was off the mark and the game went to a second overtime.
Swarthmore freshman wing Ryan Carmichael (Portland, Maine / Portland) provided the offense in the second overtime, scoring seven points including a three-pointer to put the Garnet in front 71-68 with 1:33 on the clock.
The Blue Jays found themselves playing a second straight overtime game—the Blue Jays defeated Muhlenberg 100-91 in triple-overtime on Wednesday.
McCormick was the primary offensive option for Swarthmore in the first half, hitting 6-for-10 from the floor and 2-for 2 from the line to tally 15 points. Turner fed McCormick on the low-block and the senior sank a jumper in the paint at 7:09 to put Swarthmore out front 19-13 (its largest lead of the afternoon).
The Blue Jays cut into the lead just before the half. Sophomore forward Adam Baumgartner (Reston, Va. / Bishop O’Connell) had a lay-up attempt blocked by McCormick (one of his four first-half swats). Baumgarnter, the first to track down the loose ball, saw the Swarthmore defense out of position, took one dribble and threw down a thunderous one-handed dunk to cut the deficit to 25-22 with 2:54 to play. Polster sank a jumper a minute later as the teams headed to the locker room separated by one point (25-24 in favor of Swarthmore).
A quick look at the statistics sheet shows the game was even: Swarthmore held the slight edge in rebounds (40-38) and shooting percentage (42.9% to 39.5%).
In a fitting tribute, the 300-plus fans in attendance (Garnet and Blue Jay faithful alike) gave the players a standing ovation as they exited the court.
Swarthmore continues its current four-game home stand Monday evening at 7:30 p.m. in a non-conference affair against Philadelphia Biblical. The Garnet will resume Centennial action two days later when the Shoremen from Washington College (Mary.) come to Tarble Pavilion at 7:30 p.m.