Manning added six rebounds and five assists. Grazioli grabbed a game-high seven boards, blocked two shots and made three steals. Aasim Cunningham '07 chipped in eight points, eight assists and three steals for the Statesmen (9-14 overall, 5-7 league).
Tsakani Ngobeni '07 led five Continentals in double figures with 22 points. Ngobeni, who scored 16 of those points in the second half, added three assists and two blocked shots. Nick Jones '07 registered 20 points, six rebounds and two steals. Zarrette Rogers '07 dropped in 11 points and Harlee Wood '09 had 10. Dave Alston '10 came off the bench to score 10 points and hand out a season-high seven assists.
Hobart was scorching hot from the field the entire game as it ended up with a .667 field goal percentage (34-51). The Statesmen made 18 of 24 shots from the field in the first half as they built a 42-32 halftime lead. Hamilton (16-6, 9-3) came roaring back in the second and took a 60-55 lead with 8:14 left in regulation. Hobart answered with an 11-2 run for a 66-62 advantage with 4:19 remaining. The Continentals still trailed by two with 26 seconds left when Ngobeni made a lay-up to knot the score at 72-all and send the teams to overtime.
Hamilton grabbed an early lead in the extra session, but Manning drained a three-pointer with 2:55 left to put the Statesmen in front, 77-76. Hobart made 5 of 6 shots and was 4-for-5 at the free throw line in overtime. A three by the Continentals' Alston tied the score one last time at 83-all. A Manning basket and two Grazioli free throws gave the Statesmen an 87-83 lead with 12 seconds left. Ngobeni rattled home a three-pointer as time expired for the final margin.
Hamilton shot 51.9 percent from the floor in the second half to erase the halftime deficit and wound up at 44.3 percent (31-70) for the game. The Continentals host Vassar College for another league game on Friday, Feb. 16, at 8 p.m.
Hobart College vs Hamilton College 02/13/07 8:10 p.m. at Scott Field House; Clinton, N.Y. At Scott Field House; Clinton, N.Y. HOBART COLLEGE 87, HAMILTON COLLEGE 86 HOBART COLLEGE (9-14,5-7 Liberty) Mike Manning 13-19 3-4 32; John Grazioli 11-14 4-4 28; Aasim Cunningham 3-8 2-2 8; Kevin Riley 2-5 2-4 7; Rob Genovese 2-2 0-0 5; Duncan Paddick 2-2 1-2 5; Sean McHugh 1-1 0-0 2. Totals 34-51 12-16 87. HAMILTON COLLEGE (16-6,9-3 Liberty) Tsakani Ngobeni 9-18 2-2 22; Nick Jones 8-16 2-3 20; Zarrette Rogers 4-9 2-3 11; Dave Alston 4-8 0-0 10; Harlee Wood 3-7 4-7 10; Kyle Dumas 3-4 0-0 8; Jay Simpson 0-5 5-6 5; Tim Shaw 0-1 0-0 0; Giorgi Chavleishvili 0-1 0-0 0; Joe Manns 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 31-70 15-21 86. Hobart College................ 42 30 15 - 87 Hamilton College.............. 32 40 14 - 86 3-point goals-Hobart College 7-10 (Mike Manning 3-3; John Grazioli 2-2; Kevin Riley 1-1; Rob Genovese 1-1; Aasim Cunningham 0-3), Hamilton College 9-22 (Tsakani Ngobeni 2-2; Kyle Dumas 2-3; Nick Jones 2-7; Dave Alston 2-4; Zarrette Rogers 1-2; Jay Simpson 0-2; Harlee Wood 0-2). Fouled out--Hobart College-None, Hamilton College-None. Rebounds-Hobart College 30 (John Grazioli 7), Hamilton College 29 (Nick Jones 6). Assists-Hobart College 18 (Aasim Cunningham 8), Hamilton College 15 (Dave Alston 7). Total fouls-Hobart College 22, Hamilton College 16. A-227