Notables

Friday night showed why having a deep roster is so important to making a deep tournament run.

No. 11 Amherst held All-American Jess McEntee to seven points and just one field goal and the Lord Jeffs dominated No. 14 NYU, 74-51. Four of Amherst's five starters scored double figures led by Shannon Finucane's 18 points. Like Amherst, No. 25 Brandeis advanced to the sectional finals for the first time in program history with a balanced scoring attack. The Judges defeated Muhlenberg 82-70 as all five Brandies starters scored double figures.

Check the scoreboard for more stories.

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No. 2 Hope got big contributions from its starters and its reserves in beating No. 7 Thomas More, 67-51. Erika Bruinsma came off the bench to tally 11 points and five boards. All-American candidate Carrie Snikkers chalked up 11 points and 14 rebounds while Jenny Cowen scored 18 for the Flying Dutch. They will face No. 3 George Fox in a rematch of last year's sectional semifinal. The Bruins kept their undefeated run going with a victory over Oglethorpe, 71-56. George Fox used an 18-0 second half run to break a tie game wide open.

No. 1 Illinois Wesleyan also stayed undefeated by ousting No. 4 UW-Stevens Point 77-64. Christina Solari led the Titans' attack again with 18 points, 13 rebounds and five assists. Illinois Wesleyan shot 52 percent from the field. No. 6 Washington U. reached its ninth Sweet 16 with a 56-43 victory over St. Benedict. The Bears out rebounded the Blazers 43-33.

While being ranked is nice, it isn't everything. Just ask TCNJ who upset No. 8 Rochester 70-58, giving the Lions three wins in three games against ranked tournament opponents. Hillary Klimowicz (19 points) and Alexandra Gregorek (14 points) led TCNJ to the sectional finals where No. 20 Scranton waits after edging No. 12 York (Pa.) 50-46. The Lady Royals held the Spartans to 19 points and 28 percent shooting in the second half. “This team has proven that it can win ugly,” said Scranton head coach Mike Strong. “We definitely knew it was coming down to the wire. We’re a young team, but we kept our composure.”

By Matt Florjancic
D3sports.com

Redemption is a word that gets a lot of use in the sports world, but it truly applies to the Mass-Dartmouth and Guilford men’s basketball programs.

Last season, both teams were highly regarded and expected to make good runs deep into March. Instead of making those runs, neither team got past their first game. Guilford (24-4) was upset by 17-11 St. Mary’s, Md., 89-77, while Mass-Dartmouth fell at home to the Coast Guard Academy after a first round bye.

“We were very disappointed with our early exit,” said Mass-Dartmouth coach Brian Baptiste. “We were one of the four teams in the country to get a bye and were hosting a game. When we went into the NCAA Tournament, we had already peaked a couple weeks earlier. I thought we were a little bit tired and not at the top of our game. Right now, we’re playing our best basketball.”

“We were on a pretty good winning streak at the end,” said Guilford guard Clay Henson. “Looking back on it, a lot of people thought we could just show up and win. The team that we played last year had a lot of heart. That’s how we are this year. Teams aren’t expecting a lot out of us. We play as hard as we can so we don’t have that empty feeling that we had last year.”

Following the season, both teams suffered losses to graduation. Guilford lost a professional prospect in center Ben Strong and Dartmouth graduated its best forward Dan Holbrook.

Even with the losses, both teams have made it to this year’s Sweet 16.

“The key word there is committee,” Guilford guard Rhett Bonner said of replacing Strong. “We have three or four guys that we can really turn to. It’s hard to stop four different weapons. I think that’s a lot more difficult to scout against and prepare for than having the dominant center down low. With a committee and more options, that’s made us more successful.

“We feel fortunate just to get in the tournament,” Bonner added. “We felt like we had a good regular season. The Lord put us in a good position here. He got us in the tournament and we feel like we’re taking full advantage of it. We’re trying to play like we have a point to prove and we want to keep it going.”

With Guilford retooling on the fly, Dartmouth added a transfer, Brandon Shelton, to their rotation. Shelton averages 17.9 points and 6.3 rebounds per game. He is first on the team with 11 blocked shots, third in steals and hits 46.4 percent of his three-pointers.

Shelton found a home at Dartmouth after playing for Division II UMass-Lowell. Accepting an internship and a coaching change made Shelton think about playing basketball for a different school. Shelton looked to his high school teammate and Dartmouth player Reece Freeman to see what the program could achieve.

“Dan was a unique player,” said Baptiste. “He was a big, strong body. I liked to refer to him as the Eveready battery. He’d never quit. He might miss one or two around the basket and keep going until he got it. He was always around the basket. He was a different type of player than what we tried to replace him with.

“Brandon was a scholarship player who transferred back over to us,” Baptiste added. “He’s been outstanding for us. He’s our go-to guy if we need a basket in the clutch.”

“My freshman year, I was more of a role player, sixth man off the bench,” Shelton said. “I was the only freshman coming off the bench. We had an All-American big man. I’m actually playing the five or the four here, so that’s more than I could have asked for at Lowell. I have to become more of a scorer.”

Guilford (23-5) made the trip from Greensboro, N.C., to Cleveland late Wednesday night. After Capital and Texas-Dallas play, the Quakers will face sectional round host John Carroll (25-4).

The Blue Streaks come into the third round riding a 21-game winning streak and have not lost a home game since February 13th of last season.

“We’ve had a couple good practices,” Bonner said. “We’re expecting to win. We also know we’re going to have to play the best game that we’ve played all year to come out with a win. Everybody’s definitely excited. I hope its not the kind of excitement ‘We’re glad to be here’. We want to get the job done.

“All we’ve really been working on is breaking their press,” added Bonner. “They’re forcing over 20 turnovers a game. You’ve got to somehow get the ball in. As soon as we get the ball in, they’re coming with pressure so we’ve got to get it up court and try to score a basket.”

“Playing on their home floor, we realize it’s going to be tough, but it’s tough to get into the NCAA Tournament,” Guilford coach Tom Palombo said. “It’s tough to win games in the NCAA period. We’re not going to approach it any different than any other game. We’re not going to change the way we play now when it’s gotten us to this point.”

Mass-Dartmouth (27-3) will play DeSales (24-5) at Franklin and Marshall.

“When you start a season, you always think you’re going to make the NCAA Tournament, at least I do anyway,” Baptiste said. “When Brandon came in, you could see that he was very talented. We thought we could be good. We were fortunate that the kids get along and work real hard, especially on the defensive end. All those things have to come for us to win games in the NCAA Tournament.”

Guilford and Texas-Dallas posted upsets to reach the round of eight and eliminate the Great Lakes. DeSales continued its Cinderella tournament run. Photo gallery. The No. 1 and unbeaten team remained so, while the defending national champion remained so as well.

Such it was on a sweet night of Division III basketball, in which the 16 remaining teams were cut in half.

Joe Scott scored 19 points and B.J. Viau added 18 as No. 1 St. Thomas improved to 30-0 with an 86-69 win against No. 7 Puget Sound in a Bracket of Death sectional semifinal. The Tommies will play No. 2 Washington U. for the right to go to the Final Four after the Bears edged No. 3 Wheaton (Ill.) 55-52. Cam Smith held Kent Raymond two points below his average, finishing with 22 points as the Thunder shot just 5-for-19 from three-point range for the game. Raymond air-balled a three-point attempt after a Wheaton steal in the backcourt gave the Thunder a final chance to tie. Friday's men's scores. Scroll down for women's coverage.

DeSales ended the game on a 20-3 run in beating Mass-Dartmouth 67-59, as the Corsairs were run out of the tournament the same way Coast Guard ran them out last year. DeSales shot 59 percent from the floor thanks to a double-double from Darnell Braswell, beating Mass-Dartmouth. Texas-Dallas overcame 27 points from Nate Stahl to knock off Capital 71-63, as the Comets got 15 apiece Brandon Greene and Jimmy Witten. And Farmingdale State ran past Bridgewater State 84-64, behind 24 from Mike Campbell.

Guilford made it an all-South sectional final, as Tyler Sanborn scored 23 points and added 19 rebounds and five blocked shots to lead the Quakers past host John Carroll 78-73, ending the Blue Streaks' 21-game winning streak. Franklin and Marshall advanced to the Elite Eight, beating Salem State 67-61 and holding the Vikings to 30 percent shooting, 4-for-24 from beyond the arc. (Photo gallery). Richard Stockton held off St. Lawrence 71-68 behind 19 from Jerome Hubbard.

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