Things were a bit sloppy early, as both teams struggled to find any sort of rhythm offensively. With nearly eight minutes gone in the contest, the Ephs held only an 8-5 lead. The Continentals were able to convert some Eph turnovers into easy hoops and pulled ahead for an 18-16 lead with 7:33 left in the half.
The rest of the night was all Williams, as Cole fueled a lethal 8-0 burst over the next minute of play to put the Ephs up 24-18. The Ephs closed out the half with a 17-6 run and took a 41-25 lead into halftime.
Cole finished with a game-high 20 points and five assists. He was equally impressive on the defensive end, holding standout guard Nick Jones scoreless. Jones came into the game leading the Continentals in scoring with 15.3 ppg.
The Ephs were powered inside by senior tri-captain Tucker Kain's 18 points and five boards and sophomore Dana Leary's first double-double of the year (12 points, 11 rebounds).
Though far from perfect on the offensive end, the Ephs got the job done with a gritty defensive effort. The Continentals managed just 25 points a half on 20 of 56 shooting from the floor (35.7 percent). Staunton Peck was the leading scorer for Hamilton with 11 points.
“Our entire team defense was excellent,” said Williams Head Coach Dave Paulsen. “It was one of those games offensively where we weren’t sharp at all. You’re going to have games like that. That we were able to kind of grind it out and win by 26 against a good team despite that, I’m pleased.”
It was the first home game for the Ephs since their disappointing 88-78 loss to Amherst on Jan. 8, and Paulsen’s squad has a somewhat new look. First-year Chris Shalvoy has taken over the starting pointguard duties, allowing Cole to move over to the two, a spot where he looked more comfortable all last season for the Ephs.
“Jaris is so effective running the lanes and getting up the floor,” said Paulsen. “Chris is going to be, and already is, a very good point guard so I think that having him bring the ball up the court and Jaris getting up the court helps both of them. It also takes a lot of pressure off of Jaris. It’s hard to run the offense all game and guard the other team’s best player.”
Leary has also seen more minutes lately, coming off of the bench to contribute 10 points against Conn. College before his 12-point performance against Hamilton. While Leary has always been a solid rebounder and defender, his recent growth into a more offensive-minded player gives Williams some badly needed depth inside.
“We’re getting a lot of good contributions from people,” said Paulsen. “We’ve now established two games in a row back under 40 percent shooting by the other team. That’s where we have to be at. We had kind of lost that edge defensively. We have to remember that defense is the most important thing, and really be obsessed with that going forward.”
Optimistic Eph fans may recall that the NCAA Division III record 64-game consecutive home win streak snapped earlier this year began with a win over Hamilton College on January 16, 2001.
The Ephs will look to make it two in a row at home on Friday at 7:30 against Tufts.