NEWMAC Tournament Semifinal
#2 Men's Basketball vs. #3 Emerson
Thursday, February 24 | 7:00 p.m.
Staake Gymnasium | Babson Park, Mass.
SERIES HISTORY
• Babson is 29-3 all-time against Emerson in a series that dates back to 1951-52.
• The Beavers have won five straight and 17 of their last 18 games against the Lions.
• The winning team has scored at least 80 points in each of the last eight games between the teams dating back to 2018.
• Five of the last eight games between Babson and Emerson have been decided by eight points or less.
EARLIER THIS SEASON
• Babson took both games this season, winning 80-73 on January 5 inside Staake Gymnasium and 87-79 in overtime on January 30 inside Brown-Plofker Gymnasium.
• Junior Andrew Kirkpatrick scored a career-high 21 points and sophomore Kieran Dorney posted his second double-double of the season with 20 points and 10 rebounds at Babson in the first conference game of the season. First-year Nate Amado and graduate student Mitchell Kirsch added nine points apiece, and senior Colin Bradanese chipped in with eight points in the victory.
• Babson overcame a monster night by Emerson senior Jarred Houston, who finished with an impressive triple-double of 24 points (on 9–of-14 shooting), 19 rebounds and a remarkable career-high of 10 blocked shots. Senior Zach Waterhouse was good for 15 points, classmate Nate Martin added 14 points and junior James Beckwith chipped in with 13 points off the bench.
• Kirkpatrick hit the game-tying three-pointer late in regulation and Bradanese scored seven of his team-high 23 points in the extra session as Babson posted the road win at Emerson. Bradanese shot 10-of-14 from the floor, while Kirkpatrick finished with 20 points. Kirsch contributed 16 points, six rebounds and six assists, and Dorney posted a double-double with 11 points and 10 boards.
• Junior Max Davis knocked down six three-pointers and led all scorers with 24 points. Houston finished with 21 points, 11 rebounds and four assists, while Martin and Beckwith chipped in with 12 points apiece in the loss.
SCOUTING THE BEAVERS
• Babson (18-6, 11-2 NEWMAC), the #2 seed in the NEWMAC Tournament, has won three in a row and nine of its last 10, including an 85-71 victory at Coast Guard in its last outing last Wednesday in New London, Conn.
• Senior James Welch scored a game-high 19 points to lead a group of five players who scored in double figures in the win at Coast Guard, including Amado who recorded an impressive double-double with 17 points and a season-high 16 rebounds. Kirsch made 4-of-7 from beyond the arc and finished with 16 points and five assists, classmate Spencer Cline contributed 12 points on 5-of-10 shooting, and Kirkpatrick chipped in with 10 points off the bench.
• Bradanese (15.5 pts/gm, 6.3 reb/gm) leads the Beavers and ranks 10th in the NEWMAC in scoring, shooting 53.4 percent from the field, fifth-best in the conference. Dorney (12.1 pts/gm, 6.6 reb/gm) is fourth in the NEWMAC with 42.4 percent from 3-point range, making 42 shots from beyond the arc, sixth-best in the league.
• Amado (11.6 pts/gm, 7.5 reb/gm) gives the Beavers a threat in the frontcourt, ranking sixth in rebounding, and Kirsch (9.4 pts/gm, 4.5 asst/gm) is second in the NEWMAC in assists and fifth in assist/turnover ratio (2.6).
SCOUTING THE LIONS
• Emerson (17-6, 10-4 NEWMAC), the #3 seed in the tournament, won its last five games, including home victories over MIT and Wheaton last week to wrap up the regular season.
• Powered by four double-digits showings from Houston, Waterhouse, fellow senior Chad DiCenzo and Davis, Emerson downed MIT 97-88 last Wednesday night at Brown & Plofker Gym. Houston posted 24 points and 17 rebounds, Waterson scored 20 points, Davis added 15 and DiCenzo chipped in with 14.
• DiCenzo scored a team-high 17 points in Saturday's 93-76 win over Wheaton, while Houston finished with 11 points, 11 rebounds, five assists and five blocks. Beckwith and senior Trevor McLean added 14 points apiece.
• Houston (18.2 pts/gm, 14.7 reb/gm, 3.5 blk/gm, 66.5 FG%) has recorded 18 double-doubles and ranks in the top 10 in Division III in several key categories – first in rebounds, fourth in blocked shots, and seventh in FG percentage.
TOURNAMENT HISTORY
• Babson and Emerson are playing in the NEWMAC Tournament for just the second time. The Beavers took the first encounter, 72-69, in a semifinal game on February 27, 2016.
• The Green and White are 7-7 in NEWMAC semifinal games, with victories in three of their last five.
• Babson is looking for its fifth NEWMAC championship, previously winning in 2002, 2004, 2015 and 2016.
REGIONAL RANKINGS
• Three of the top five in the latest NCAA Division III Region II rankings are schools from the NEWMAC.
• WPI sits atop the poll, while Babson and Emerson old down the 4-5 spots. UMass Dartmouth at #2, Nichols at #3 and Keene State at #6 round out the poll.
CLIMBING THE CHARTS
• Kirsch (108 assists) is just the fourth player to dish out more than 100 in a season going back to 2003.
• The others are Kenny Ross '14 (149 in 2012-13, 147 in 2013-14), Joey Flannery '17 (121 in 2016-17) and Crew Ainge '21 (114 in 2019-20)
HOMECOURT ADVANTAGE
• Babson is 11-2 inside Staake Gymnasium this season, with both losses coming to nationally-ranked teams (No. 9 Saint Joseph of Connecticut, No. 24 WPI).
• The Beavers are 16-3 at home since the start of the 2020-21 campaign, and 25-5 since the start of 2019-20.
BY THE NUMBERS
• The Beavers are 16-3 this season with shooting at least 40 percent from the field.
• Babson has won 12 of 13 this season and 18 of its last 19 dating back to last season when winning the rebounding battle, and is 32-2 with the advantage on the glass since the start of the 2019-20 campaign.
• The Green and White are 12-0 this season when scoring at least 80 points, and 18-1 over the past two seasons when hitting that number.
A LOOK AHEAD
• The winners of Thursday's semifinal games will play for the NEWMAC championship on Saturday at the site of the highest remaining seed.
• The conference tournament champion earns an automatic berth into the NCAA Tournament field, which will be announced on Monday, February 28, on ncaa.com.
