SWARTHMORE, Pa. - Less than 24 hours after taking No. 22 Wesleyan to the brink in an overtime loss, the Haverford College men's basketball team (1-1) faced another formidable NESCAC foe, dispatching Bowdoin (0-2) by an 80-69 final in the Garnet Tip-Off Classic on Saturday.
Four Fords reached double-figure scoring on Sunday, with Nate Torres taking command of the contest with 18 points. Nick Kerkorian was again a key contributor with 16 points and eight rebounds. Dhruv Mehrotra lit up the scoreboard early, knocking down a trio of triples and finishing with 11 points while Brandon Banadda grabbed 11 points, pulled down seven rebounds, and collected a game-high four steals in a strong turn from the bench.
The two sides traded buckets in the first five minutes of action, with Bowdoin taking a four-point lead with 10:06 showing on the first half clock. The lead would be the largest of the day for Bowdoin, as Mehrotra immediately brought Haverford back within one with his triple, and that jumper helped key a 7-0 run for the Fords. Bowdoin rallied back to pull closer yet again, but another 7-0 run with Mehrotra connecting from long-range to punctuate that spurt at 25-17 in favor of Haverford.
The Fords went into the intermission with an eight-point advantage, but a crafty 9-2 run for Bowdoin gave the Polar Bears some life as they pulled back to within three at 32-29 with 17:16 remaining in the half. An 8-2 run gave the Fords a nine-point advantage at 44-35 with 12:29 to go, and Torres took command with a three-pointer and a layup on back-to-back possessions to put the Fords up 49-37 with under 11 to play.
Bowdoin hovered around within striking distance, but a pair of Harry Johnson free-throws gave Haverford its largest lead of the contest at 60-45 with 8:09 to go. Kerkorian then drilled a three-pointer to put the Fords up 63-48 and Nate Torres connected from deep with 4:31 to go, essentially icing the contest with the lead at 13. Haverford added its final nine points of the contest from the free-throw line, as the Fords hit 20 of its 27 shots from the charity stripe overall.
Haverford held a 41-36 advantage on the glass, and forced Bowdoin into 19 turnovers, turning those giveaways into nine points. Michael Simonds had 25 points, a game-best, for Bowdoin, while James McGowan added 20. No other player reached double-digit scoring for the Polar Bears.
Haverford took its first victory over a NESCAC side since 2012, a home victory over Connecticut College inside Gooding Arena. The matchup was also Haverford's most recent battle against NESCAC squads prior to this weekend.
Men's Basketball will next be in action just up Lancaster Avenue against Rosemont on Wednesday night, taking on the Ravens inside Alumnae Hall on the Rosemont campus. Tip-off is slated for 7 p.m. as the November non-conference slate continues.