Days after their respective seasons began, the Emerson women’s and men’s basketball teams returned to the Bobbi Brown and Steven Plofker Gym in an afternoon doubleheader Sunday, Nov. 17. The women’s team took the court first against rivals Suffolk University, while the men’s team battled No. 13 Tufts University.
Women’s basketball
The Rams struck first with a bank shot jumper at the 9:25 mark, while Emerson started out cold, missing their first five shots—four of which were threes. Sophomore center Claire English rebounded her own miss and laid the ball in to get Emerson on the board with 6:38 remaining. The Lions and Rams then went back and forth before a three from sophomore guard Kendra Dodd put the Lions up 15-6 with 2:25 left. Dodd’s triple was Emerson’s first make in eight attempts. Despite a late surge by Suffolk, the Lions led 18-12 at the end of the first quarter. They kept their distance for much of the second quarter, taking a 26-16 lead at halftime.
Emerson maintained the advantage throughout the third quarter, but not without a slew of turnovers and other missed opportunities. Still, the Lions managed to build a 40-25 lead with 1:43 to go. Layups and free throws kept Suffolk within striking distance, 40-30, with 38 seconds left. Levison, who missed a deep three to beat the halftime buzzer, converted on her next attempt from downtown. Her three-pointer in isolation put Emerson up 43-30 at the end of the third, leaving her and the Lions fired up to defend home court.
The Lions struck quickly in the final frame, as Silk found Canter for a catch-and-shoot three-pointer four seconds into the period. Emerson continued to pull away, but Suffolk remained in the hunt. The Rams swished their first in 15 attempts to make it a 48-39 ball game with 4:41 to go. Another Rams three-pointer brought the Lions’ advantage to just five, 49-44, with two minutes remaining.
Emerson received two more baskets from Canter at 1:56 and English at 1:08 for a 53-45 lead, but Suffolk’s clutch perimeter shooting continued. The Rams nailed one more three in a last-ditch effort with 30 seconds to play. Both teams traded turnovers before Dodd made the game-sealing steal as time expired. Emerson survived a Suffolk rally for a 53-48 victory.
Head coach Bill Gould admitted the result was an “ugly” win.
“I loved the fight and the fact that we had to battle,” he said. “Obviously, I’m pleased we got a win. I’m pleased it showed a little resiliency and a little toughness, so that was good. I’d like to play a little better.”
Sunday’s game also featured a familiar face. Ava Salti ‘24, who played basketball and soccer for the Lions, was on the sidelines as an assistant coach for Suffolk.
“It was definitely weird, there was no question about it,” Gould said. “But, I’ve always felt that Ava is going to be a great coach. I know that’s what she wants to do, and I really feel confident that she’s going to be really, really good.”
English dominated with 19 points (7-of-9 shooting), 11 rebounds, four blocks and two steals. Canter finished with nine points on 4-of-6 shooting from the field. Silk recorded seven points but grabbed 11 rebounds and dished five assists, and Levison secured 11 rebounds along with five points and two steals.
English says her composure has been the key to her strong start to the season.
“Get in the paint—we have run a really good offense that looks inside—but never selfish. If there’s a kick out, it’s there,” she said. “So, [I’m] just seeing what the defense gives me, and then going from there.”
The women’s basketball team is without starting junior point guard Bri Frongillo, who has missed the last three games with a shoulder injury. Though Gould is optimistic about the All-Conference First Team guard’s return, he added that the situation has been “helpful” for her teammates to step up.
Gould also raved about English and her recent performances.
“The thing that’s really scary [is], she still doesn’t really know what she’s doing,” he said. “She still really isn’t quite that confident, so she’s only going to get better. That’s the thing that I love—she’s only going to get better. She hasn’t even come close to what her potential ceiling is, so she’s doing great.”
The 17-year head coach has spent most of his career working with post players, those who used their height advantage to back down smaller defenders and score. Even though this year’s offense is more free-flowing, Gould implemented several post tactics that allowed English and her teammates to succeed.
“It’s funny—we actually did put in a couple of things today, and they [Suffolk] went [into a] 2-3 zone 90% [of the time],” he explained. “I think part of the reason they went zone is because of Claire.”
Gould cited the team’s defense and rebounding as areas they’ve grown in after the first few games. He was also optimistic despite the Lions’ rough shooting day, where they went 18-of-58 from the field (31%) and 5-of-24 from deep (20%).
“We didn’t shoot real well, but that happens sometimes against a zone,” he said. “I’m really not worried about our shooting, even though it was terrible. But the defense and rebounding needs to be there. It was there [Sunday], it just needs to keep getting better.”
The Lions take on Bridgewater State as part of the BSU Cave Classic on Saturday, Nov. 23, another slate of back-to-back contests. English believes that having faced a similar schedule this past weekend, they’re ready for the upcoming tournament.
“We’re used to the intensity of it,” she said. “It’s just rest our bodies, focus up, understand the game plan, and get to work.”
Men’s basketball
The men’s basketball team fell behind to Tufts early, as the Jumbos went up 18-5. Senior guard Lucas Brenner drilled a corner three to get Emerson within 10 with 14:29 remaining.
The Jumbos eventually built a 22-8 lead, a deficit that the Lions chipped away at slowly but surely. A three-pointer from 7-foot junior center Linus Helmhold sliced Tufts’ lead to six, 24-18, with 10 minutes remaining. Emerson took a 29-28 lead off of Helmhold’s reverse layup with 4:26 left and eventually held on for a 36-34 lead at the break.
After halftime, the Jumbos reminded the Lions why they are one of the best teams at the Div. III level. Emerson’s brief lead evaporated with three straight buckets by Tufts, who now led 41-38. Junior guard Jacob Armant’s corner three tied the game at 41 moments later, but the Jumbos went on a 13-0 run in the blink of an eye, only broken by a Helmhold and-one with 14:18 remaining. Helmhold also denied a dunk attempt with 2:07 remaining—his third of the game—but was assessed a technical foul shortly after. The Jumbos made more free throws to put the game away, ultimately beating the Lions 80-57.
The game turned out to be a tale of two halves for the Lions. After an efficient opening period, where Emerson shot 45% from the field and 40% from three, they shot 27% from the field and made one of 14 attempts from three (7%). Tufts, meanwhile, made 15 of 24 shot attempts (62.5%) in the second half. They also shot 14-of-18 from the free-throw line (77.8%) in the final 20 minutes.
Helmhold finished with a career-high 19 points (8-of-13 from the field, 2-of-5 from three), along with eight rebounds and three blocks in 29 minutes off the bench. Armant tallied 11 points, three rebounds and two assists. Brenner rounded out the Lions’ top three scorers with eight points and three assists.
Head coach Bill Curley emphasized the need to stay disciplined throughout games.
“Any time we have a little of success, we forget what got us to that success,” he said. “And they gotta be disciplined to do it the same time over and over and over.”
“But I think the kids are playing really hard,” he continued. “I mean, to play that team on the backside of the back-to-back is very tough … Understand when you’re playing good teams, this is what they do, and we have to get to that level.”
Tufts men’s basketball has made the NCAA Tournament eight times, including three in the last four years. Curley believes Sunday’s game was an “excellent challenge” towards the team’s goals of their own tournament bid.
“We want to make [the] tournament,” he added, “and so we’re going to do everything we can to prepare us to try to get there. And [we’re] going to have some up and downs, but I think we’ll be alright.”
Armant took away several positives despite the result, namely gaining a lead on a nationally-ranked opponent. But, he added, the second half offered some vital lessons.
“I think we figured out it starts on defense,” Armant said. “I think when we play good defense and are able to get out in transition, we’re a lot more successful.”
Curley also praised Helmhold’s performance, critical against Tufts’ forwards.
“It was great because they had big guys,” he said. ”A lot of times, they get stuff playing against all these little shorties, and they just grab them and the refs penalize the big guy a lot. But, they let him play a little bit. He was going 1-on-1, he’s got some great moves, and he can shoot the ball like we said earlier.”
The men’s basketball team is days removed from an exhibition game against Yale University. Despite falling to the Ivy League champions, Curley took several lessons into the team’s weekend slate of games, one of the biggest being focus.
“Yale, the size and speed and strength they have is very similar to Tufts,” he added. “I think it was good for us … But there is a price. They’ve got to be locked in.”
The Lions have also been without junior starting point guard Brendan McNamara, who is recovering from a foot injury. Curley has been impressed with how other players have stepped up in his absence, but added, “You can’t replace B Mac, he’s just a heady, smart [player]. He can get the ball where it has to go.”
With McNamara out, Armant has been thrust into the starting lineup this year after coming off the bench in 27 games last season. Regardless of his role, he says his mentality has never wavered.
“I think about how blessed I am to play basketball every day at the college level, especially when I was a kid, I used to dream about times like this,” Armant said. “[On Wednesday], we played on ESPN at Yale. So regardless of what the game is, I’m just grateful for being on the court, and I’m going to try to make the most out of every moment.”
Going forward, Armant hopes to bring the aspect of togetherness into future matchups, particularly with conference play only a couple of weeks away.
“I think we’re most dangerous when all the guys are eating,” he said. “Big Linus played really well today. If we can pair that with me playing a little better and Arico, Lucas, some of the other guys, too … And once B-Mac gets back, we’re going to be incredibly dangerous.”
Following a 68-65 loss against Albertus Magnus yesterday, the Lions face Worcester State at the Brown-Plofker Gym on Saturday, Nov. 23, at 1 p.m.
