Hopkins men’s basketball took on the 15th-ranked Swarthmore College Garnet at Swarthmore on Saturday in a battle for the top spot in the Centennial Conference. The Jays were looking to avenge their loss to Swarthmore earlier in the season, when they lost 78-69.
The game started close with eight lead changes; however, the first half was defined by two Swarthmore runs. Swarthmore guard Ryan Ingram started a 13-1 run that was followed by a 10-0 run shortly after. Swarthmore would enter halftime leading 41-28.
Hopkins fought back in the second half. Late in the fourth quarter, with 3:30 left on the clock, threes from senior forward Tom Quarry and graduate student guard Conner Delaney narrowed the Swarthmore lead to just seven points. Hopkins would go on a 6-2 run to turn the deficit into only five points with 1:39 left in the game.
Swarthmore’s Ingram, however, hit a dagger pull-up jumper with one second left on the shot clock to ignite a 6-0 run that would put the game out of reach for Hopkins.
With the loss, Hopkins and Swarthmore remain tied for first place in the Centennial Conference standings, but Swarthmore has swept the regular-season series with Hopkins.
Delaney led the game in scoring with 23 points, continuing his impressive campaign that saw him reach the 1,000-point landmark earlier this season. The game saw him move into third place on the Jays' all-time assist leaders. Delaney is only two assists shy from being second all-time.
The game also saw junior forward Sidney Thybulle tie his career-high of 15 points and anchor the defense with three blocks. Junior guard Carson James scored 13, and Quarry chipped in 10 points and shot a team-high 40% from the three-point line.
Swarthmore was propelled by a balanced team scoring effort, led by 14 points off the bench by sophomore Vinny DeAngelo. Freshman Aidan Godfrey was a force inside, notching a double-double with 12 points and a game-high 10 rebounds; He also had three blocks. Swarthmore’s three-point shooting was incredibly efficient, with three players shooting 50% or better from beyond the arc.
Hopkins looks to bounce back from the loss and finish the regular season strong to put themselves in a good position to win the Centennial Conference championship and compete in the NCAA Division-III Men’s Basketball Tournament.
The Jays will close their regular season with a road game against the McDaniel College Green Terror on Feb. 2.
