The Ephs entered the game just 2-5 in conference play, locked in a seventh place tie with Bowdoin in the league standings with only two games remaining. Because only the top eight teams qualify for the NESCAC Tournament, the Ephs needed a win against Colby in order to avoid a must-win situation in their regular season finale against Bowdoin on Saturday.
“We’re all feeling a little bit of pressure,” said Williams Head Coach Dave Paulsen. “The bar has been set so high over the past couple of years. To some degree that’s not fair to our guys, but on another level, that’s what we want, we want to have those high expectations. It was good to win at home tonight. Even though we didn’t really play a great game, we were still able to get the win.”
The Ephs found themselves in a 7-0 hole after the opening minute but were quickly able to fight their way back into the contest. Sophomore Dana Leary came off the bench early in the game to spark a boost in defensive intensity that powered an Eph run. A Kain 3-pointer capped the rally and gave the Ephs their first lead of the night, 17-14, with 14:30 to play in the half.
The two teams traded narrow leads until the half closed with Colby clinging to a 39-38 advantage.
Kain took control in the second half, scoring 20 of his game-high 30 points over the final 20 minutes of play. He was aided by fellow senior tri-captains Jaris Cole and Michael Graham, who both contributed great performances down the stretch. Cole shutdown Mule standout Pat McGowan, who finished with just 7 points, and led the fast-pace Eph attack, dishing out 9 assists and scoring 15 points. Graham, ever-reliable for the Ephs, came up with some big stops on the defensive end and chipped in 13 points, including two big free throws in the final minute.
Kain helped the Ephs pull out to a 65-59 lead with just over six minutes to play, but the Mules were not about to concede. They quickly cut the lead to just 65-63 and hung within striking distance of the Ephs down the stretch. With just over a minute to play, Kain knocked down his biggest three of the night to extend the Eph lead to 72-68. After a missed three-point attempt, the Mules were forced to send the Ephs to the charity stripe. Again Kain was the go-to man for Williams, as he converted all six of his free throw attempts over the final minute, sealing the 80-74 victory for the Ephs.
It was not a spectacular offensive performance for the Ephs, who shot just under 40 percent from the field. Their strong showing on the foul line (20-of-22, 91 percent), especially in the second half, helped secure the win.
Defensively, the Ephs held the Mules to 38.5 percent shooting on the night, including just 33.3 percent in the second half. The Ephs were also able to overpower the Mules on the glass, posting a dominating 48-32 rebounding advantage.
Nick Farrell (21 points, 5 rebounds) and Drew Cohen (20 points, 6 rebounds) led the Mules, who remain in fifth place in the conference.
“We’re happy with the win,” said Paulsen. “We have got a lot to work on, but I thought we played better defensively in the second half. We had some very clutch performances down the stretch. It was fitting that our three seniors really carried us tonight, each in their own ways. It was a great effort, and we need to have another one tomorrow.”
Williams will host Bowdoin tomorrow at 3pm in what will likely be the team’s final home game of the year.