Oswego, NY.— With 10 minutes to play, Williams (23-6) led #5 Oswego State (26-3) by 9 points. However, after a timeout at 10:45, the Lakers seemed like a different team. Jeremiah Sparks drove and got fouled by Nate Karren on the attempt. He made both shots, continuing his perfect free throw shooting night.
Julian Crittendon picked up where Sparks left off, driving through the middle and using a retreat dribble to get space for a midrangeswish. Oswego pressed, and Jamal Achille was able to steal the ball from Alex Lee, turning and scoring over Cole Prowitt-Smith, drawing a foul, too.
Achille made his shot, and suddenly the Lakers were in position to take the lead. The Ephs didn't get discouraged. Karren fought for his own rebound, and got fouled on the putback attempt. He made one of two.
Sparks and Crittendon weren't finished. Crittendon drove on the left and was fouled by Brandon Arnold. He made both, putting the Lakers within one, and that marked the Ephs' 7th foul. They would have to contend with bonus shots for the last seven minutes of play.
To take the lead, Jeremiah Sparks took the ball coast to coast, scoring with a euro step. The Ephs were in trouble and knew it— they took a short timeout to regroup.
However, their problems weren't over. Oswego's leading scorer, Akhee Anderson, stole the ball on the in bounds play and dished it to Crittendon, who nailed a corner three to put the Lakers up four.
Again, the Ephs stayed composed. Noah Dinkins scored Williams' first points in a while, using a pump fake to start his drive and finishing with a floater. Alex Lee got fouled, and despite not being able to convert at the line, the Ephs got the rebound. Lee took it right back to the hoop, finishing on the right. The game was knotted up at 69.
Sparks made two at the line. Lee dished to Karren, who turned and dropped in a midrange to tie his season high of 21 points.
Julien Crittendon wasn't able to connect from behind the arc, but Ahkee Anderson asserted himself on the defensive end again, stealing the ball and driving into Nate Karren to draw a foul. He made one of two.
Noah Dinkins scored again, but Jeremiah Sparks responded with a huge corner three to take a two point lead. Things looked dire for the Ephs, but Cole Prowitt-Smith wasn't going to let the season end there.
He blew past his defender for a layup, tying his season high of 23 points. The Williams defense stayed engaged, generating a pair of turnovers to give the Ephs more chances. On the second possession, Prowitt-Smith got his defender in the air and leaned in to draw the foul. He coolly made both free throws.
Ahkee Anderson showed his own poise in the clutch, fading on the baseline to tie things at 77-77. With the Lakers playing their best defense of the game, the shot clock expired before the Ephs could get a shot off.
Oswego had a good chance to decide the game, but Anderson couldn't finish on the drive this time. The Ephs took one final timeout.
"We drew up a play," said Eph head coach Kevin App on those final moments. "We've really been doing a great job attacking the paint and the rim, so we drew up a play to do that. They're really well coached, so they showed man and then jumped into the zone. Cole didn't overreact, and made a play that probably only Cole could make. I'm just really happy for him to have that moment, and I know the team was thrilled."
Prowitt-Smith let the clock tick down, then kicked into gear, driving from left to right through the middle. He planted both feet and elevated, showing the ball up before scooping it off the glass. It was in.
The Lakers had no time left. They used a timeout to advance the ball, but Jeremiah Sparks couldn't get his last-ditch three to go, and the Ephs won, 79-77. Williams will be advancing to the Sweet 16 for the second time in three years.
"It means a lot just to this team this year to keep this season's journey going," said coach App on moving forward. "It's been a really rewarding run, a really fun run. Like Cole said in our post game press conference, we recruit to our basketball program selling these moments of keeping that legacy of success in the national tournament going, like teams before us have done. So for these guys, they'll embrace it and keep finding ways to make it happen. I'm just proud as their coach."
The teams were neck and neck in the first half. Jeremiah Sparks got things going for Oswego State right away. He drove baseline, and dumped it off to the Lakers' center, Cartier Bowman, for the first points of the game.
Nate Karren led the Ephs in the first half. Williams' first points came when Alex Lee drove left on the perimeter and passed over to the big man for three. Karren would go on to shoot 4 of 5 from the line, leading the Ephs with 14 of their 37 points in the first half.
On the Lakers' side, it was Anderson and Sparks who led the charge. Anderson had 12 and Sparks had 10.
At the half it was tied at 37, and it stayed competitive until Williams pulled away at 15:34. Seniors Cole Prowitt-Smith, Nate Karren, and Brandon Arnold were instrumental in giving Williams their biggest lead of ten points. The trio combined for 13 points and 3 assists in the period before the Lakers made their comeback run.
Coach App noted the seniors' contributions: "I told them after the game— all you can hope as a coach is that the seniors come out and play with confidence, and leave it all out there. To see them lead the way today, it's just fun to watch. Brandon Arnold played great in the minutes he had, he had a couple of big buckets. It's fun seeing Stod and Dan Lee out there. I think Cole and Nate did what you hope they do at this time of the year: 'Let's go make some plays and have some fun.'"
Cole Prowitt-Smith had 27 points, 5 rebounds, and 3 assists. Nate Karren had 21 points and 8 rebounds.
For their Sweet 16 matchup, the Ephs will play Christopher Newport on Friday.
"We'll use tomorrow to get reacclimated to campus and home," said App on moving forward. "On Monday, we'll try to take something away from this weekend— why we had success and where we can get better, and then we'll figure out areas we need to tighten up and get ready for Christopher Newport."
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