Hopkins's men's basketball team ranked number two in its most recent tournament.

M. basketball falls to 2nd in Pride of Maryland

By: Mike Yuan

Posted: 12/4/08

This past week, the men's basketball team sacrificed the turkey and mashed potatoes as they spent Thanksgiving break in Maryland, playing in the 2008 Provident Bank's Pride of Maryland tournament. The Jays entered the tournament with a 1-1 record and looked to rebound from their last game, which was a home loss to Whitworth.

Heading into the tournament, senior point guard Collin Kamm stressed the Jays' defensive focus. "Early in the season it has been really important for us to establish an identity as a defensively minded team. The key for us is putting together a consistent effort for all 40 minutes and not just for one half or part of the game."

The action kicked off on Tuesday night as Hopkins faced Frostburg State in round one action in Frostburg. Both teams showcased back-and-forth explosive offense throughout the entire game.

The Jays started out strong. With a 6-4 lead and only five minutes into the game, junior forward Andrew Farber-Miller sparked an 11-0 run by the Jays, which included scoring by five different players and resulted in a score of 17-4. In the following six minutes, the Bobcats posted an 18-2 run to take the lead at 22-19. The Jays ended the half with an 11-2 run to give the Jays a 30-24 lead heading into the break.

In the second half, Hopkins, at one point, held a 10-point lead, but saw it dwindle as the Bobcats mounted another comeback. With 4:18 to go, Frostburg senior Juan Wansley hit a jumper to bring the Bobcats ahead 58-56. The Jays, however, went on a surge of their own. In the following minute and a half, Kamm made back-to-back layups and senior guard Scott Weisenfeld sank a three-pointer, capping off a 7-0 run. A pair of Frostburg free throws brought the Bobcats to within one with less than a minute to go. With 15 seconds left, Farber-Miller sank a pair of free throws, and sophomore forward Mike Henrici secured the win by grabbing a rebound off a missed three-point attempt by Anderson to end the game at a final score of 69-66. On the day, Hopkins was led by Farber-Miller's 17 points and eight rebounds and Weisenfeld's 16 points. Junior Adam Baumgartner added 11 points and nine rebounds, while Kamm had six points, six rebounds and five assists.

The win brought Hopkins into a second round match up on Saturday against Salisbury University, who beat Goucher in first round action. The game was balanced throughout, including 14 lead changes and four ties.

Midway through the first half, Salisbury took their first lead of the game 17-14, but a layup by senior forward Phil Beggans and a three-pointer by fellow senior forward Ryan Purcell gave the Jays a 20-17 lead with 8:18 remaining., and led 31-30 at halftime.

In the second half, the Jays opened up their lead with several spurts. A 14-6 run to start the half came with the help of back-to-back jumpers by junior guard Pat O'Connell and a pair of layups by Kamm. However, Salisbury eroded away at Hopkins's lead, cutting the deficit to four at 47-43. But the Jays stepped up their defense and kept the Gulls from scoring again until less than a minute remained. Hopkins closed out the game with a 5-0 run en route to a 54-47 victory. The Jays' defense kept the Gulls to just 17 points in the second half.

Baumgartner led all scorers with 14 points to go with his six rebounds. As a team, Hopkins shot 46 percent from the field in the win.

"I try to focus on one game at a time," Baumgartner said. "So it was really great when we got the first two wins and went to the championships."

Saturday's triumph landed the Jays a spot in the title game on Sunday against St. Mary's, who beat Washington to advance.

Once again, the Jays went out strong, building a 10-0 lead in less than four minutes. With 9:32 remaining in the half, the Jays reached their largest lead at 24-11, but the Seahawks came right back, finishing the half with a score of 52-43. However, the second half was all St. Mary's. Led by junior guard Camontae Griffin, the Seahawks overtook the Jays. O'Connell's three-pointer with seven-tenths of a second left was the closest the Jays got after losing the lead, ending with a score of 84-81.

O'Connell topped his previous career high of 22 with his 26 points, leading all Hopkins scorers. Farber-Miller added 19 points and four rebounds, while Kamm chipped in 11 points and four assists of his own. O'Connell and Kamm each earned a spot on the all-tournament team for their performance throughout all three games.

"It is certainly an honor to be recognized. As a point guard my main responsibility is to set up my teammates, so when I receive an award like that it truly is a testament to the guys around me," Kamm said on receiving all-tournament honors. The Jays now stand at 3-2 on the season, and look to host Franklin and Marshall College on Wednesday at home. The game will be the first this season against a Centennial Conference team. "We have a big test Wendesday here against Franklin and Marshal," Baumgartner said. "That will show how we respond to our defeat on Sunday in the championship."

Kamm summed up the objectives of the remainder of the season well. "The competition in the conference is as strong as it has ever been this year, so it will not be easy. However, especially [since] we have shown [what] we are capable of so far this season, I have the utmost confidence that we can accomplish that goal."