MEDFORD - Sixth ranked Williams College got 15 points and six rebounds in 19 minutes from senior tri-captain Troy Whittington (Brooklyn, NY) as the Ephs posted a 71-52 victory at Tufts in NESCAC men's basketball action on Saturday afternoon at Cousens Gym.
Williams, the defending league champion, improved to 2-0 in NESCAC and 15-1 overall. The Ephs knocked down nine three-pointers in the game and shot 51.8 percent (29/56) overall. Tufts saw its losing streak stretch to four games as they fell to 6-8 and 0-2 in the league. The Jumbos were led by 15 points and seven rebounds from junior Alex Orchowski (Cornwall, NY).
Sophomores James Klemm (Highlands Ranch, CO) and Nate Robertson (Ann Arbor, MI) combined to score the first 12 Williams points as the visitors surged to an early 12-5 lead. Orchowski led an 11-4 spurt with seven points as the Jumbos battled back to tie the score at 16-16 with 9:23 remaining until halftime. However, the Ephs tallied the next nine points to take a 25-16 advantage on a three-pointer by junior James Wang (Sydney, Australia) at 5:27.
The Eph lead was 34-25 at the break, with Whittington's 10 points leading the way. Williams shot 51.9 percent (14/27) in the half, compared to 32.3 percent (10/31) for Tufts. Orchowski's nine points paced the Jumbos in the first 20 minutes.
Scoring the first five points of the second half, Tufts cut the gap to 34-29. A three-pointer by Wang later brought the Williams lead back into double-digits at 43-33. Tufts hung around and pulled within nine at 47-38 on freshman guard Kwame Firempong's (Inglewood, CA) three-point shot with 12 minutes on the clock. A three at the other end by Williams freshman Hayden Rooke-Ley (Eugene, OR) put the visitors' lead back in double digts, and that's where it would stay.
The closest Tufts would get from there was 11 points (54-43) after a three-point play by senior tri-captain Sam Mason (York, ME) at 7:20. The Ephs' lead peaked at 21 points three times.
Klemm, who hit five of eight shots and was three for five on three-pointers, added 13 points to the Williams attack. Wang finished with eight points, eight rebounds and three assists, while freshman Taylor Epley (Goshen, KY) connected for 10 points. Robertson recorded six assists.
Sophomore Scott Anderson (Sudbury, MA) had eight points and six rebounds for Tufts, who shot just 33.9 percent (20/59). Firempong finished with five points, five rebounds, three steals and two assists.
Tufts is off until next weekend when they resume NESCAC play at Bowdoin on Friday night (Jan. 21). The Ephs hosts Connecticut College in conference action that night.
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