The men’s and women’s basketball teams had their NCAA Tournament runs end with tough losses over spring break. The women lost in the third round in a tough 67-62 game against the Whitman College (Wash.) Missionaries on March 8, while the men fell 86-67 in the second round to the Whitworth University (Wash.) Pirates on March 9.
The women got off to a fast start against the Missionaries, establishing an early double-digit lead on a jumper from senior forward Misha Jackson. The teams traded points for most of the first half, with every Whitman run quickly snuffed out by an Emory basket. A three-pointer from junior guard Hannah Lilly pushed the Eagles’ lead back to 10 with just under two minutes remaining in the first half.
Whitman, however, struck back quickly with four unanswered points in the final minute to trim the deficit to six at the intermission.
Two Missionary free throws to start the second half cut the Emory advantage to just 37-33, but the Eagles would not give in easily. A jumper at the 12:58 mark from junior guard Selena Castillo pushed the lead out of the one-possession range and gave Emory a 52-47 edge.
Whitman responded with an 8-0 run that gave them their first lead of the game, 57-54, with 7:46 to go. A Jackson free throw and Castillo three quickly gave the lead back to the Eagles.
After the teams exchanged layups and endured a five-minute long scoring drought, Emory held a one-point lead with just 42 seconds to go. The Missionaries sunk two free throws to swing the lead one point in their favor.
The Eagles had two chances to tie or take the lead in the final seconds but could not convert, while Whitman nailed a pair of free throws to push the final margin to 67-62.
Morgan led the Eagles with 17 points and five assists, while Jackson had 13 points and six rebounds. Castillo contributed 15 points on 60 percent three-point shooting.
The men took the court the next day and quickly found themselves on the wrong side of the box score against Whitworth.
The Eagles were keeping pace in the opening minutes, trailing just 9-6, before the Pirates used a 12-2 run to break the game open and hold a 13-point advantage at the 11:48 mark in the first half.
A jumper from junior forward Jake Davis broke the Whitworth run, but the Eagles struggled to close the gap to single digits. The Pirates were able to stretch their lead to as large as 18 points with just over three minutes to go, but Emory fought back and cut the deficit to 42-30 at the half on a pair of layups from Davis and sophomore guard Josh Schattie.
The Pirates opened the second half with a three-pointer, swinging the game’s momentum back in their favor. Whitworth pushed their advantage to a game-high 21 points at the 12:05 mark, but the Eagles slowly chipped away the lead, going on a 21-10 run over the next seven minutes. Davis provided the exclamation point with a bucket that cut the deficit to a manageable 10 points.
Whitworth, however, responded with a run of their own to extend their lead to an 86-63 margin with two minutes to go. The game ended with the Pirates advancing, but not before four Eagles points in the last minute of play created the game’s final 86-67 score.
Davis led the team with 22 points, while senior guard Alex Greven performed admirably in his final game as an Eagle, chipping in 16 points.
The losses do nothing to take away from fantastic seasons from both the men and women’s teams. The men finished the season at 20-7 with a 10-4 mark in University Athletic Association (UAA) play, while the women ended at 24-4 overall and 12-2 in UAA play. Both teams finished with UAA titles.
– By Ryan Smith
Photo Courtesy of Emory Athletics
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