SWARTHMORE, Pa. - The Haverford College men's basketball team (0-1) was edged in an overtime thriller at the Garnet Tip-Off Classic at Tarble Pavilion, falling in overtime to No. 22 Wesleyan (1-0), 83-74. Haverford found itself down 59-48 with 7:22 remaining in regulation, but climbed back in the contest thanks to a furious 14-4 run down the stretch, tying the score at 62-62 with 1:01 remaining on the fifth triple of the contest from senior Dhruv Mehrotra.
Four Haverford starters scored in double figures in the 2022-23 season opener, for both teams, as Nate Torres and Josh Love each finished with 16 points while Mehrotra notched 15 points on his five three-pointers. Nick Kerkorian also poured in 14 points,including a pair of three-pointers in overtime, adding six rebounds to his tally. Ryan Trotter was a force on the glass with a game-best 11 boards.
After both teams struggled for offensive consistency out of the gates, the Fords established their formidable presence in the contest early, taking a 14-5 lead after Harry Johnson converted back-to-back layups ahead of Trotter's first two points of the afternoon. The Cardinals bounced back, cutting the Haverford lead to just one at 19-18 with 9:37 remaining in the first half, and eventually tying the contest at 22-all after a dunk from Kial Cross.
Love converted from distance and later poured in a layup to put Haverford ahead by five with 5:51 to go, but an 11-0 run from Wesleyan quickly erased the lead. Undaunted, Mehrotra was again on fire from deep down in the waning minutes of the half, cutting the lead to 33-30 and eventually tying the score with a triple entering the intermission.
Torres came out strong in the second half, drilling a jumper to put the Fords up 43-40 with 15:43 to go, but Wesleyan continued the game of runs, sprinting out on another big run, a 12-0 spurt that was punctuated by a layup from Jared Langs.
It was at that point that Haverford began its comeback bid, with Brandon Banadda and Torres converting layups to help accentuate Mehrotra's big three-pointer. Wesleyan briefly went back ahead, taking a 64-62 lead with just 18 seconds left, but Torres was sent to the line, drilling both of his free throws to send the game into overtime.
An experienced Wesleyan side looked to be the aggressor in the extra frame, taking the first six points of overtime before Kerkorian converted from deep to end that run. Unfortunately for the Fords, Gabe Ravetz and Nicky Johnson found jumpers to extend the Cardinals lead to 74-67 with 2:11 to go. Kerkorian pulled the Fords back within six with his second three-pointer of overtime, but Wesleyan took care of business at the free-throw line to escape with the victory.
The contest featured 10 ties and 10 lead changes. Haverford staked its advantage with 11 made three-pointers, while Wesleyan thrived off bench scoring and free-throws, notching 52 of its 83 points from its reserves and getting to the line 37 times while holding Haverford to just seven trips to the charity stripe. Ravetz, the leading scorer for either side, added 22 points in 33 minutes, with 12 points from the free-throw line.
The two sides were meeting for the first time since the 1998 season. The Fords now return to action at Swarthmore tomorrow, taking on Bowdoin for the first time in program history to wrap up the stint at the Garnet Tip-Off Classic at 12 p.m.