M. Basketball holds off Swarthmore rally

In what was sure to be one of the most competitive games of the season, the Hopkins men’s basketball team welcomed the Swarthmore Garnet into Goldfarb Gym on Saturday afternoon, as the two teams got ready to face off for the second time this season. In the first matchup between these Centennial Conference rivals earlier in January, the Jays cruised to an impressive 76-47 rout of Swarthmore in front of the Garnet’s home crowd. However, the second time around proved to be a much tougher test for the Blue Jays, as they were able to slip past the resilient Swarthmore squad for a 60-53 win. Hopkins improved to 13-8 on the season with a record of 10-4 in conference play. As a result of this critical win, the Blue Jays maintained third place in the Centennial Conference standings.

The game got off to a slow start for both teams. After consistently trading baskets for the first eight minutes, Hopkins finally found some rhythm in the offensive end of the court. After a dart three-pointer by sophomore Gene Williams, the Jays stretched their lead to 11 points with just under 10 minutes to go in the first half. The lead continued to increase throughout the rest of the first half as Hopkins took a 34-19 lead into the locker room, feeling very confident about their success in the first half.

The beginning of the second half was a complete reversal of the first half for the Blue Jays as the Garnet came out firing on all cylinders to start off the second stanza. Swarthmore dominated the first seven minutes of the half, scoring 15 straight points to cut the Blue Jay lead to one point. After controlling the pace of the game on both sides of the ball, the Blue Jays were forced to burn a timeout and reassess their defensive strategy. Coming back from the timeout, sophomore Niko Kotoulas reignited the energy of the Hopkins squad by scoring their first points of the second half on a beautiful layup to extend the lead to three. After this critical basket, the Jays went on an inspired 13-3 run led by senior Daniel Corbett and junior George Bugarinovic, who combined for nine of the points during the run.

Having regained their double digit lead once again, the Jays were able to maintain a sizable lead for the next few minutes of play as the Garnet simply could not stop the Hopkins offense, which had regained its stride after struggling in the beginning of the half. With nine and a half minutes remaining on the clock, the Jays maintained a steady 11-point advantage. However, the Garnet came storming back scoring seven points to cut the lead back down to four.

Once again, it was Kotoulas who brought life back into Goldfarb, as he was fouled while making a great layup. After converting from the stripe, Kotoulas and the Jays held a seven point lead. For the remainder of the game, the two teams traded baskets. Juniors Jimmy Hammer and Omar Randall made critical free throws after being fouled in the final two minutes of the game. The game ended in favor of the Blue Jays, 60-53, to bring them into double digits for wins in Centennial Conference play. The Jays now hold a three game winning streak after facing the toughest part of the schedule throughout January.

Kotoulas was the most valuable player of the game for the Jays, as he provided consistent, critical offense when the team was struggling to score. The sophomore guard finished the game with 14 points, converting six of his eight field goals and grabbed four rebounds on the day for the Jays. Corbett finished the game with nine points and two assists but played an even more crucial role on defense, as he intercepted five passes for steals. Sophomore Gene Williams was the only other Blue Jay to hit double figures, as he scored 10 points to fuel the Jays offense.

This is a critical time of the season for the team as they head towards Centennial Conference playoffs. The Blue Jays will look to keep their winning streak in tact over the weekend when they face off against Dickinson for the second time this season. The mighty Jays will be looking to avenge their loss against the Red Devils back in mid-January where Hopkins lost by 10 points. The game is set to start at 1 p.m. in Goldfarb Gym on Saturday. As the Blue Jays head towards the last stretch of games in their season, they will look to gain some momentum and maintain their winning ways heading into playoff season.