By Andrew Chirico
Senior Writer
After a season of ups and downs, the Washington College men’s basketball team finished their final week of the season with two home games versus McDaniel College and Johns Hopkins University. The Feb. 16 showdown between the Green Terror finished off with a 62-56 defeat for the hosts. The finale and senior day versus Johns Hopkins ended in an 82-65 defeat.
The game versus McDaniel was back and forth early on the in the first half. The game was tied 12-12 with just a little over 11 minutes gone by. The Green Terror then went on a scoring outburst, scoring 11 unanswered points which ultimately led to a 10 point lead with just three minutes to play in the first half. WC edged the double-digit margin down to single digits when McDaniel found themselves with a 29-22 lead into halftime.
The Shoremen did outscore the guests by a point in the second half, but it was not enough to trim the large margin lead for McDaniel. The last minute was an exciting one, which came down to crucial free-throws for WC. Freshman Brandon Berry sunk two clutch shots at the foul time to trim McDaniel’s lead to 58-54 with 37 seconds left to play. The game then went back and forth on the foul line but ultimately the Green Terror converted their shots on the foul line, giving them the victory.
Junior guard James Drury led the team with 16 points, meanwhile senior forward Dave Knox led with six rebounds. Berry had the team high five assists. WC was only able to shoot 39.6 percent meanwhile the guests shot 53.3 percent. McDaniel also had much more success in the paint, out rebounding WC 32-19.
The visiting Blue Jays ruined the Shoremen’s Senior Day, much in part to the play coming from their big men. Hopkins’ outscored WC in the paint by 20 points and outrebounded the hosts by 17. After the Shoremen jumped out to a one point lead within the first 11 minutes of the first half, Johns Hopkins controlled the rest of the game, never trailing after that point.
WC allowed 41 points in each half and scored 33 in the first and 32 in second half. Leading the Shoremen in scoring was senior Pat Morgan with 18 points. Fellow seniors Dave Knox and Peter Gould also had contributions in the stat column. Knox had five rebounds along with five steals, meanwhile Gould scored four points. All three players were given a standing ovation prior to the game. “I’m going to miss coming to the gym every day and competing with guys who I consider family. It’s been a great ride and I’m proud of every one of my coaches and teammates,” said Gould.
For the Shoremen, they ended their season with a 3-22 overall record, going 1-17 in Centennial Conference play. Head Coach Aaron Goodman is happy with the growth of the program with his first season at the helm. “We have not seen the results in the win column, but they will come if we continue to believe in each other and buy into how hard you need to play in a very tough conference to be victorious. Our goal is to be the best team we can be by the end of the season and each day we continue to grow,” he said.
Goodman, the former Naval Academy assistant coach, reflected on his experiences in his first season at WC as well as the players that will return next season.
“The year certainly goes by quickly. I have had fun growing with this team, our assistant coaches, and team managers who did a great job in helping to solidify a foundation of hard work, details, and organization. I will review the film, my notes from the season, and reflect upon the improvements I need to make as a coach and leader to build for next year,” said Goodman. “We have a strong contingent of freshmen and sophomores who have made significant contributions, who have the upside, and with a strong off season and summer can make a larger impact next season.”