BALTIMORE, MD – The 15th-ranked Johns Hopkins men's basketball team closed the game on a 16-8 run to defeat Skidmore in the second round of the NCAA Tournament Saturday night at Goldfarb Gym. The Blue Jays, which won their school-record 25th game of the season, will advance to the NCAA Sweet 16 for the first time since 1990. The Thoroughbreds end the season with a 20-8 record and see their nine-game win streak snapped.
Trailing 50-45 with 7:33 to play after a Connor Merrill three-pointer, junior Matt Billups threw down a two-handed dunk to spark a quick 5-0 run. Senior George Bugarinovic then hit a pair of free throws and Billups put Hopkins on top with a pull-up jumper at the 5:00-mark. The lead was short-lived as Merrill answered with a layup on the other end to swing the lead back to the Thoroughbreds. Billups came right back with a jumper and Hopkins led 53-52 with 4:09 to go.
The teams traded empty possessions and then Bugarinovic tipped in a missed Billups layup to make it a three-point game as the clock ticked under a minute. The Blue Jays then got a stop and the Thoroughbreds fouled, sending senior Jimmy Hammer to the line, where he nailed both shots. On the ensuing possession, Erik Sanders hit a three from the corner to cut the deficit to two with 22 seconds on the clock. Skidmore once again fouled and junior Gene Williams was true on both shots to push the lead back to four.
Once again Skidmore hit from three as Merrill banked one with eight seconds to play, making it a 59-58 game. Hammer got fouled on the inbounds and again hit both shots to put the Jays back on top by three. The Thoroughbreds had a good luck from straight on as time expired, by Aldin Medunjanin's shot hit the rim.
The game was tightly contested from the opening tip, as there were 16 lead changes and nine ties. Skidmore opened the game with a three from Martin Bedulskij and then the teams traded buckets as the visitors held an early 5-2 lead. Curran then scored five straight points for the Blue Jays, including an old-fashioned three-point play to put Hopkins up 7-5. Skidmore came right back with a pair of buckets to go up two, but a Williams triple swung the lead back to the home team. It didn't last long as a pair of Royce free throws gave Skidmore an 11-10 lead at the 13:14-mark. Hopkins answered with a 10-3 run, fueled by a pair of three-point plays by Hammer and Williams, to take a 20-14 lead.
The Thoroughbreds came roaring back with a 13-2 burst that saw them go ahead 27-22 with 2:46 to play on a Medunjanin layup. The Blue Jays answered though with a fast-break three from Williams and a pull-up jumper in the paint from Hammer to send the teams into the lockerroom tied at 27. Hammer opened the second-half scoring with a bucket from downtown, but back-to-back threes from Skidmore put the Thoroughbreds up 33-30. The teams traded trips to the line and then a Sanders drive and score gave Skidmore a five-point lead with 15:32 to play.
Curran sandwiched a pair of baskets, including a three, around a Medunjanin free throw and the deficit was one. The teams went back-and-forth over the ensuing three and a half minutes and Hopkins led 43-41 after another three from Williams. Merrill tied the game on a putback off a Sanders miss and that ignited a 9-2 run by the Thoroughbreds that saw them go up 50-45 at the 7:33-mark.
Hammer led the Blue Jays with 16 points while also handing out a pair of assists. Williams added 14 points, going 3-of-4 from three-point while sophomore Ryan Curran chipped in 12 points. Bugarinovic grabbed a game-high 10 rebounds while also swiping three steals. Sanders paced the Thoroughbreds with a game-high 17 points while Merrill had 14. Medunjanin and Royce Paris chipped in 10 points each.
Hopkins will now face fourth-ranked Babson on Friday, March 13 at a site to be determined. Stay tuned to HopkinsSports.com to find out where the Blue Jays will be playing in the NCAA Sweet 16.