Amherst Wins 2002 NESCAC Men's Basketball Championship

Courtesy Trinity Sports Information

Box Score

HARTFORD, Conn. - Junior forward Steven Zieja (Hadley, Mass.) scored a game-high 32 points to lead the Amherst College Lord Jeffs to an 85-78 win over the Trinity College Bantams in the finals of the New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) Men's Basketball Championship Tournament at Oosting Gymnasium this afternoon.

Trinity, seeded No. 1 in the tournament, falls to 18-5 for the season and must hope to receive an at-large bid to the NCAA Division III Championship Tournament this evening. The Lord Jeffs, seeded No. 4 in the tourney, improve to 21-6 for the season and earn an automatic bid to the NCAA Division III Championship Tournament. Amherst defeated Trinity, 86-75, in the inaugural NESCAC Championship Tournament last season in Hartford.

Trinity jumped out to an early lead, 13-4, with 13:40 remaining in the first half thanks to three three-pointers by senior tri-captain swingman Colin Tabb (Somers, Conn.). Amherst went on a 15-6 run over the next three minutes, tying the score at 19-19 on a trey by Zieja at the 11-minute mark.

Amherst shot the ball extremely well in the final 10 minutes of the first half, taking a double-digit lead into the locker room, 50-40. Zieja had 21 first-half points for the Jeffs. Tabb had 13 points, while junior forward Ryan Uszenski (Woodbridge, N.J.) scored 11 and senior tri-captain forward Bryan Dion (East Haven, Conn.) tallied 10 in the first half for Trinity.

In the second half, Amherst quickly extended its lead to 14 points at 54-40, but the Bantams gradually played themselves back into the game. Trinity trailed, 76-72, in the final two minutes but turned the ball over on consecutive offensive trips. Amherst led, 80-72, with one minute left, when Trinity freshman guard John Halas (White Plains, N.Y.) made a three-pointer from the corner to cut the Jeff advantage to five points with 41 seconds remaining. Several Bantam three-point attempts found the iron down the stretch and Amherst held on, 85-78.

Amherst sophomore guard John Donovan (Holmdel, N.J.) joined Zieja in double figures with 16 points, along with six rebounds and four assists, while junior center Pat Fitzsimmons (Durham, N.C.) added 10 points and seven boards. Tabb paced Trinity with 24 points and added four assists, Dion notched 22 points and seven rebounds, and Uszenski recorded 16 points and six boards.

2002 NESCAC MEN'S BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIP
First Round - Tuesday, Feb. 19 at Higher Seeds
at No. 2 Williams 81, No. 7 Tufts 57
No. 6 Wesleyan 75, at No. 3 Connecticut College 61
at No. 4 Amherst 71, No. 5 Bowdoin 61

Semifinals - Saturday, Feb. 23 at Trinity
No. 4 Amherst 69, vs. No. 2 Williams 62
at No. 1 Trinity 74, No. 6 Wesleyan 71

Championship - Sunday, Feb. 24 at Trinity
No. 4 Amherst 85, at No. 1 Trinity 78