CARLISLE, Pa. - The Haverford College men's basketball team (13-9, 9-6 CC) mounted a furious comeback to stun homestanding Dickinson (9-10, 8-6 CC) by a 73-69 final on Thursday evening at the Kline Center. The Fords erased a 16-point Red Devils lead in the final 14 minutes to come away with a momentous result in the Centennial Conference playoff chase as the season enters its penultimate weekend.
Nick Kerkorian was a large part of the comeback bid, as he drilled four three pointers in the final 10 minutes, including the eventual game-winner as Haverford completed the chase to pull away from the Red Devils in the waning seconds. A balanced scoring approach was again key for Haverford, with Nate Torres leading the Fords with 15 points while Harry Johnson poured in 13. Josh Love added nine off the bench.
The Fords took the upper hand to begin the contest, getting out to an early 7-2 lead before Dickinson showcased its depth and pushed Haverford into some early struggles from the field, opening up a 16-11 advantage with 13:34 to go in the first. From that point, the Red Devils broke things open with a 14-2 run to take a commanding 15-point lead with 9:41 left in the first stanza.
Haverford crawled back to pull within 10 at the half, with Gabriel Franklin draining a trey with just four seconds left on the dwindling clock. Out of the halftime gates, Dickinson looked to be in a strong position to cruise to a home victory, with Jack Tierney notching a three to restore a 13-point lead and Ryan Robinson pouring one in from distance as the lead reached its apex of 15 with 14:17 to play.
Haverford hunkered down from that point, quickly realizing that it was now or never to get back into the contest. Nicholas Stewart connected from deep, opening up a Fords run that also saw Josh Love pour in a three-pointer. The lead was still sizable at 14 with 11:30 to go following an Anthony Goeb three, but Kerkorian brought Haverford within 11 with his first points of the game. Jackson Ryan brought the lead down to single digits, kicking off a formidable 12-0 run as Haverford was suddenly right back into the contest with under five minutes to play.
Taking advantage of the momentum from a sustained run that seemed to knock the wind out of the Kline Center, Kerkorian calmly knocked down his second three to put the Fords within a single possession with 3:50 to play. On Haverford's next turn down the court, the Pacific Palisades, Calif. product was called upon yet again, putting Haverford within two at 69-67 with 3:17 to go.
The Fords gained the lead for good with 2:23 to play, as Kerkorian refused to miss, knocking down his third three pointer in just a matter of minutes for a 70-69 lead. Dickinson had a chance for an immediate answer, but the Haverford defense was more than up for the task, forcing Dickinson into poor shot selection despite a second chance opportunity following an offensive rebound. The Red Devils fouled Torres, and after hitting one of two free throws, the ensuing Dickinson offensive chance was denied by an emphatic block from Stewart. Goeb later missed a long three-point try, and Haverford regained possession with 13 seconds to play.
Forced to foul Johnson, Dickinson could only watch as the first year calmly knocked down both shots. A last-ditch attempt from Andrew Gostovich sailed off the mark as Haverford completed the improbable comeback.
A key for the Fords came on second-chance points, as Dickinson allowed the Fords to take 16 points off offensive rebounds. The Fords dominated the offensive glass with Torres pacing that effort with three.
The Fords have now won four consecutive matchups with the Red Devils, a streak that dates back to the 2018-19 season.
A busy week now concludes on Saturday as the Fords take on Gettysburg at approximately 3 p.m. inside Bream Gym. The road contest will be preceded by the Haverford women taking on the Bullets at 1 p.m.