This weekend’s action at Margaret Bundy Scott Field House featured Hamilton’s #11 nationally-ranked men’s basketball team (17–2 overall, 3–2 NESCAC) competing against two NESCAC rivals from Maine. On Friday, the team posted a convincing victory over Bowdoin, winning 77–42.
On both sides of the ball, the Continentals were able to assert their dominance close to the basket. They scored 42 points in the paint compared to Bowdoin’s 20, and out-rebounded the Polar Bears 39–27.
“Typically, we try for an ‘inside-out’ style of play, to have a balanced offensive attack with scoring opportunities inside as well as opportunities from the three-point line,” said head coach Adam Stockwell. “In the Bowdoin game, the opportunities presented themselves more frequently in the paint. Part of that was our guys
being extremely aggressive and pursuing more interior opportunities, which is definitely a mindset we are trying to encourage. Hopefully, we can continue to improve the development of a balanced offensive attack.”
The Continentals’ scoring effort was led by Kena Gilmour ’20, who scored 23 points on 7-of-13 shooting from the field. Gilmour was able to get to the foul line and convert, going a perfect 7–7 from the charity stripe. Peter Hoffman ’19 also poured in 12 points for Hamilton while grabbing a team-leading eight rebounds, while Andrew Groll ’19 contributed 10 points and 7 rebounds.
Bowdoin took the lead with 13:18 remaining in the first half on a three-pointer by Jack Bors to go up 13–12. Hamilton answered less than a minute later when Gilmour assisted a Spencer Kendall ’21 layup, giving the Continentals a lead they would never relinquish. At the midway point of the first half, the Continentals had stretched their lead to 6 points, and by halftime, they were up by 14.
Hamilton’s defensive efforts stifled Bowdoin’s offensive attack throughout the game, but the defense really hit its stride in the second half, allowing the Polar Bears to score only 17 points on a 26.1% shooting percentage from the field. In addition, Hamilton’s defense forced a total of 26 turnovers, converting them into 27 points.
While Friday’s game versus Bowdoin was decided in the paint, Saturday’s contest against Colby College was settled beyond the three-point arc. Colby drained 13 shots from beyond the 3-point line, compared to just 4 for Hamilton.
The Mules showed a willingness to pull up and shoot from well behind the three-point line and were not deterred by misfires; along with making 13 threes, Colby missed 22.
Still, the Mules’ decision to live or die by the three eventually paid off. After making just 6-of-20 shots from beyond the arc in the first half, Colby was much more efficient in the second half, going 7-for-15.
“Colby is a very quick team with lots of shooters spacing the court. They put a lot of pressure on their opponent’s defense. They forced us to guard more of the court than normal.
[The 13 threes] resulted from a combination of a strong shooting team and some breakdowns on our end,” said Stockwell.
“Moving forward, we are going to work on improving our defensive positioning, attention to detail in scouting reports and personnel, and ensuring that we bring the type of defensive energy we had against Bowdoin. We absolutely need to become more aware of our defensive rotations and spacing to be prepared for Bates and Tufts, who provide challenges similar to Colby.”
The Continentals were strong out of the gate Saturday, grabbing a 10–2 lead in the opening three minutes, but Colby soon erased it with an 8–0 run over the next 2:09.
The two teams battled back and forth the remainder of the first half. Colby enjoyed a slim advantage going into halftime, leading 36–34.
Then it was the Mules turn to charge hard out of the gate. They opened the second half with a 10–2 run, creating a 46–36 cushion.
Though Hamilton battled back to pull within 3 points with 15:32 remaining, they didn’t get closer than that the rest of the game, with Colby taking its largest lead of 12 points at 85–73 with 51 seconds to go.
Gilmour again led the Continentals in scoring, racking up 24 points to go with 23 the night before. He also pulled down 9 rebounds. Groll finished with 12 points and 7 rebounds, and Michael Grassey ’21 scored 11, going 6 of 7 from the free throw line.
The offensive attack for the Mules was lead by junior guard Sam Jefferson ’20, who scored 29 points on 9 of 14 shooting from the field, including 6 three pointers.
The team rebounded quickly with a 80–65 non-conference win over the Wells College Express on Jan. 28. Mark Lutz ’20 led all scorers with a career-high 22 points.
Hamilton will host two NESCAC opponents again next weekend, taking on Bates College on Friday, Feb. 1 at 7:00 PM and Tufts University on Saturday, Feb. 2 at 3:00 PM, both in the Margaret Bundy Scott Field House.
