The Hopkins men’s basketball team won their last game of the regular season in a close game against Washington College. The Jays improved to 15-10 overall and 12-6 in the Centennial Conference. In Head Coach Bill Nelson’s 550th career game, the team secured a first round bye in next week’s Centennial Conference Tournament.
At the start of the game, Washington took an early 7-3 lead. However, the Jays responded by scoring 13 points, and they never trailed in the game again. Junior George Bugarinovic earned a double-double, his fifth of the season.
“Our game against Washington College was a good way to close out the regular season. It was their senior day game so we knew they would be amped up, ready to go. They're a 3-point shooting team that can go on hot streaks but we were able to handle all of their runs and come out with a win,” Bugarinovic said.
Looking ahead, he was optimistic about the team’s next game against Franklin and Marshall College.
“Getting the three seed going into the conference tournament was big, because it will give our bodies additional time to rest and recover since we don't play until Friday as opposed to Wednesday. We play a very good Franklin & Marshall team in the semifinals. We'll have to focus on rebounding and playing good defense to come out with a win, especially considering they outrebounded us in the first two games we played against them,” he said.
His teammate, junior Luke Chambers, echoed his sentiments.
“We were thrilled to get a bye and get some of our guys some rest going into the playoffs. Franklin and Marshall is a tough matchup though. Even though we've beaten them twice, it's really hard to bear any team three times in one season. Our preparation leading up to the game won't change much from any other game. We just need to maintain our focus and make sure we execute and compete on game day," Chambers said.
At the end of the half, the Jays closed on a 6-0 run, capped by sophomore Matt Billups’s bucket with 18 seconds left on the clock.
“We are the only team this season that has beaten Franklin & Marshall both times we met them. So I think this proves that we match up well with them defensively and can get good looks at the basket on the offensive end,” Billups said.
Senior Connor McIntyre barely missed a double-double with eight points and eight boards during the game. “As a team have been making great progress at the right time of the year in terms of our team defense and communication, and we're hoping to improve upon our rebounding as we go towards the playoffs,” McIntyre said.
The team’s success in the first half continued into the second half, as junior Jimmy Hammer opened with a couple of points to bring Hopkins to a 16-point lead.
“Receiving a bye was absolutely huge because going into the game on Saturday, it wasn't clear if we would get a bye or not, even if we won. But, we did our part in winning the game and received some help from [Gettysburg College] as they beat McDaniel and we were able to get the three seed. We were pretty pumped after we heard the news,” Hammer said.
“As far as the postseason is concerned, we have already started preparing for Franklin & Marshall because we know how difficult it is to beat a team three times in a row, especially a team of that caliber. We have to be very prepared going into the game and I definitely think we will be ready. I, along with the entire team, want to make the NCAA tournament. It is within our grasp and I think we have a very good chance of accomplishing that goal.”
“We've played really well down the stretch as a team and were able to finish the regular season strong with two big wins. We're looking forward to playing F&M in the semis of the conference tournament, but we've got a lot of preparation before our game Friday. We've been watching a lot of game film and practicing hard to put us in a position to win the conference tournament. Everyone has the exact same mindset on this team, and the only goal we have is to make the NCAA tournament and bring back a Centennial Conference Championship to Hopkins, senior Daniel Corbett said.
The Jays will be playing Franklin & Marshall in the semifinal round of the conference tournament Friday night. We wish the team luck as they try to come out of the conference tournament with a championship.
