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| Patrick Mahoney had a big second half to keep RPI's winning streak alive. Rensselaer athletics photo by Liz Brady |
RPI ran its run to 18 in a row, while No. 3 Randolph-Macon survived in overtime and Amherst got some key pieces back in Saturday's Division III men's basketball action.
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute rallied from an 11-point halftime deficit as Patrick Mahoney scored 27 points, 19 in the second half to lead the Engineers past Vassar 61-49. The victory was the 18th straight for the Engineers, which tied a school record set in 1991.
RPI opened the second half on a 16-3 run to take the lead. Vassar battled back to retake the lead at 47-46, but Mahoney sank two 3-pointers to push the lead to five, and Will Rubin added another from behind the arc to put the game out of reach. The Engineers (18-2, 13-0 Liberty League) shot 52 percent from the field after halftime, while holding the Brewers (9-12, 5-9) to 28 percent. Vassar had led by as many as 15 points in the first half.
Randolph-Macon's Buzz Anthony redeemed himself for an ugly first half, as he hit a baseline jumper with 11.6 seconds remaining to tie the game at home against Lynchburg. The Yellow Jackets went up 73-69 with 3:39 left in overtime before Lynchburg (13-9, 8-5 Old Dominion Athletic Conference) fought back and tied the game at 73-73. Ian Robertson nailed a 3-pointer before a three-point play by the Hornets' Tharon Suggs evened the score at 76-76 with two minutes remaining. Terry Woods made three free throws to put No. 3 Randolph-Macon (21-1, 13-0) on top 79-76 with 1:43 remaining. TC Thacker hit two foul shots and the Hornets had the ball before a steal by Corey Bays led to a pair of free throws by Robertson to give the Yellow Jackets an 81-78 edge with 24.4 seconds left. The Hornets had a pair of layups sandwiched around an Anthony free throw to tie the game at 82-82 with 6.4 seconds remaining before Robertson hit a 3-pointer from the right corner with 0.3 seconds left to give R-MC the thrilling victory.
North Central (Ill.) sent Elmhurst to its third loss in the past four games, as the No. 17 Cardinals clipped the No. 8 Bluejays in a defensive battle, 56-45. Matt Cappelletti led the way for the Cardinals (17-4, 10-2 CCIW) with 16 points on just 5-for-13 shooting, while Jake Rhode went 4-for-15 for Elmhurst (18-4, 9-4) en route to a team-high 15. Cappelletti hit a 3-pointer with 2:33 left in the first half to cap a 20-0 run for the Cardinals. Elmhurst cut the lead to 11 midway through the second half, and got as close as eight with under three minutes left, but never seriously threatened.
Eric Sellew returned to the lineup after missing five games and Grant Robinson returned for the weekend after missing two games, helping Amherst defeat No. 9 Colby 87-69. Sellew and Robinson combined for 26 points, as Amherst improved to 19-3, 6-2 in the NESCAC. The Mules were without the services of Sam Jefferson, the team's No. 1 scorer at 22 points per game. Jefferson left Friday night's win against Hamilton with 14 minutes left and did not return. The Mammoths were led by Garrett Day's 16 points, one of five scorers in double figures.
Jake Ross had another big game for Springfield, this time putting in 29 points and grabbing 14 rebounds and blocking four shots for the No. 23 Pride in an 86-76 win vs. Emerson. Springfield has won six consecutive conference games to improve to 18-3, 9-1 in NEWMAC play. Springfield took a big second half lead with a 16-2 run thanks to four 3-pointers, including two from Ross, to go up 58-37.
York (Pa.) made its senior day a memorable one, as the Spartans outlasted Christopher Newport 101-97 in double overtime. The Spartans are now tied with the Captains atop the Capital Athletic Conference as both squads have two remaining games in the regular season. York extended its win streak to a season-high eight while the Captains saw their own win streak get snapped at 11. Jared Wagner had a career day in the win with 38 points to lead four Spartans in double figures. The Captains started the second overtime with an Adrian Beasley 3-pointer as they jumped on top early. The Spartans tied the game at 90 and it was tied again at 92. The Spartans took the lead for good as Riley Dobraniecki hit a huge 3 from the corner to put York up 95-92 with 2:36 left. York pushed the lead to four as Gordon split a pair of free throws. Brock Geiman sliced the lead to one with a 3-pointer. York's Joe Polczynski split a pair of free throws to push the lead back to two. After York got a stop, Dobraniecki hit a layup and was fouled to put York up 99-95.
Kyle Woodruff tied a season-high with 22 points off the bench and shot 7-for-12 from the field and 6-for-7 from the line as Alma knocked off No. 24 Albion 78-74. It was the Britons' first conference loss in 10 outings, as Albion fell to 18-3 overall. After 28 ties and 22 lead changes, Alma (11-10, 5-5 MIAA) took the lead on a Brandon Rake jumper with 5:14 left. Ryan Stevens had 14 points and three assists, while Brandon Rake went for 10 points and nine boards. Caden Ebeling and Jamezell Davis, Jr. each put in a game-high 23 points for Albion.
Tarique Holmes hit a 30-foot buzzer-beater to force overtime against NJAC leader Stockton and the Gothic Knights struck first in overtime. But Stockton (14-8, 11-4) struck next and struck often, scoring 16 unanswered points to win 87-78. Ospreys freshman guard DJ Campbell got the run going with a turnaround jumper after senior forward Jordan Taylor put Stockton up one (71-70) with a jumper. Campbell drilled a stepback three with 2:38 remaining for a 74-70 edge and the run was on, with Campbell contributing seven of the 16 points.
Calvin finished the MIAA sweep of Hope, as the Knights got 35 points, 12 rebounds and seven assists from Derrick DeVries in an 84-59 win against their archrival. The win came in front of 3,350 fans at DeVos Fieldhouse in the 203rd meeting between the teams. Hope leads the series, 103-100. Calvin (12-9, 6-4 MIAA) took the lead for good by outscoring the Flying Dutchmen 12-5 over the final 4:13 of the first half for a 38-33 halftime lead. Hope (11-10, 4-6) never led again after Tony DeWitte answered an Evan Thomas 3-pointer with one of his own for a 29-28 lead.
Bowdoin rallied from a 23-point second-half deficit and knocked off Hamilton in overtime, winning 81-74. The Continentals, who had been ranked No. 22 in the country entering the holidays, with a 9-1 record, fell to 14-8, and 2-6 in the NESCAC. The Polar Bears (8-14, 3-6) used separate runs of 13-2 and 12-2 in the second half to close the gap. David Reynolds scored a career-high 33 points for Bowdoin, including 22 after halftime.
For more from Saturday's Division III men's basketball action, check out the list of headlines from game stories posted to D3hoops.com by Division III schools.