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| Matthew Stritzel had a huge second half for Carleton in the win against St. John's. Photo by Ryan Coleman, d3photography.com |
The snowstorm which made travel difficult across much of the midwest and led to official travel bans in Pennsylvania led to many rescheduled games on Saturday, but Carleton and Middlebury would be among the teams glad they got their games in, as they each defeated top 10 teams in Division III men's basketball action.
Matthew Stritzel scored 11 of his 13 points in the second half and Kent Hanson registered game-highs of 26 points and 13 rebounds as Carleton knocked off No. 8 St. John's 66-63 in Northfield, Minnesota. The Johnnies led by five at halftime and were up by as many as 13 in the second half before the Knights rallied, evening it up on a Stritzel 3-pointer with 5:38 left. He added another 27 seconds later to give Carleton a three-point lead, and the teams went back and forth from there, with the Knights taking the lead for good on a Kent Hanson bucket with 42 seconds left. It is the first loss for the Johnnies in MIAC play, while Carleton improved to 6-10 overall, 4-7 in the league. Saint John's (13-2, 9-1 MIAC) entered the day on a 12-game win streak and had won its last six games by an average of 33.0 points.
Middlebury handed No. 3 Williams its second consecutive loss as the Panthers rolled past the Ephs 80-66. Kyle Scadlock was held to three points as Williams (15-2, 4-1 NESCAC) shot 36 percent from the floor and 2-for-10 from beyond the arc. Jack Farrell led Middlebury (14-5, 3-2) with 24 points, while Max Bosco and Matt Fogler added 18 and 17 apiece.
Eric Williams poured in a game-high 30 points on 8-for-11 shooting as Ursinus joined the top 10 upset hit parade, defeating 10th-ranked Swarthmore 94-88. Shane Stark added 21 as the Bears improved to 10-7, 7-3 in the Centennial Conference. Swarthmore fell to 14-3, 7-3 as Ursinus went 9-for-14 from 3-point range. Clay Gerds got the offensive rebound and threw it down with two seconds left to lift UW-Platteville to a 61-60 win at No. 9 UW-Stevens Point. Carter Voelker scored a game-high 22 points and Robert Duax added 15 for the Pioneers, who improved to 11-6, 4-2 in the WIAC. The Pointers fell to 11-5, 3-3.
Zach Lydon hit a 3-pointer with 20 seconds to play to lift Cortland past No. 15 Plattsburgh State 65-63. Lydon had nine points off the bench, while four Red Dragons scored in double figures in the win. It's Plattsburgh's second consecutive loss, as the Cardinals fall to 12-4.
Mikey Pettway scored 24 points and Alex Sikorski added 17 as Western New England snapped Gordon's 15-game winning streak in a 94-88 win. The Golden Bears, 6-12 overall and 3-6 in the CCC, overcame 30 points and 14 rebounds from Garrisson Duvivier in dropping the Scots to 16-2, 8-1.
Andrew Jaworski led four Babson players in double figures but 12th-ranked MIT rallied from a 13-point second-half deficit to edge the Beavers in overtime, 94-90, in NEWMAC action. AJ Jurko returned after a three-game layoff and poured in a game- and career-high 37 points, including 4-for-5 shooting from beyond the arc. The win snapped Babson's six-game winning streak.
No. 23 UW-Whitewater trailed for most of the second half before taking the lead for good in the final minutes of regulation and hanging on for an 87-85 triumph at UW-River Falls. The Warhawks (13-4 overall, 2-4 WIAC) took the lead for good with 2:15 to play after a layup by junior forward Riley Jensen, who converted another layup 25 seconds later to push the UW-Whitewater lead to three.
Salisbury lost for the third time in four games as Frostburg State defeated the No. 24 Sea Gulls 97-86. The Bobcats held Salisbury to 38 percent shooting from the floor, while Lawrence Pettis and Terry Kenner scored 20 points apiece for Frostburg (8-8, 4-2 Capital Athletic Conference).
Marcus Curry and Carson Long scored 16 points apiece in Guilford's 78-55 ODAC win over visiting Bridgewater. The win was Tom Palombo's 400th as a college coach. The Quakers (13-5, 7-2) led by as many as 30 points in the second half. Scranton defeated Juniata, 64-59, earning the program's 1,500th all-time win. The Royals join Wittenberg, Wooster, St. Thomas, Illinois Wesleyan, Hope, Westminster (Pa.), Augustana, Williams, and UW-Stevens Point as current Division III programs with 1,500 wins.
Covenant continued its unbeaten run through the USA South, but needed a late defensive stop to hold off host Averett, 62-59. Covenant (11-6, 10-0 USA South) never trailed in the contest and held on for the victory in the final seconds as Montre' Cash's forced 3-point attempt to tie the game fell short. The Scots have won six straight games overall and remain atop the West Division of the USA South. Bailey Spragg led the Scots with 18 points, on 8-of-10 shooting, with six rebounds, five assists, and three steals.
Westfield State's Jauch Green Jr. and Salem State's Hakeem Animashaun staged an epic scoring duel, each with more than 40 points, as Salem State wore down Westfield, 103-101 in overtime. Animashaun scored 46 points on 17-for-23 scoring in the low post and 12-for-16 free throws. He grabbed 13 rebounds. He added three blocked shots, including thwarting Green on the Owls last chance drive to try to tie or win the game at the end of the overtime period. Green tallied 43 points, on 15-of-27 shooting and 13-for-17 shooting at the foul line, and grabbed 14 rebounds.