By Chris Gionta
@Chris_Gionta
The Springfield College men’s basketball team was defeated by MIT on Wednesday night at Blake Arena by the score of 71-66.
One of the mysteries of the game of basketball is who is going to have the breakout game, and at what point. When the Pride matched up with the Engineers 18 days ago, MIT’s Giannis Chatziveroglou attempted three shots and gathered six points. However on Wednesday night, he surpassed that mark less than halfway through the opening half, and ended up with 30 total points by night’s end.
“Today, he was bigger and stronger than us, and just got the best of us,” said Springfield guard Collin Lindsay on Chatziveroglou’s performance.
His scoring barrage was an example of MIT’s offensive versatility. Springfield head coach Charlie Brock had a lot to plan for with perimeter shooters heading into the game as it was. Therefore, opportunities were more abundant for low post players like Chatziveroglou.
“The predicament, especially with MIT, is that if you try to take another guy to double down on him, they have four guys that are averaging 38% scoring threes. So, it’s a bit of a predicament,” said Brock.
To begin the game, Zeke Blauner dominated with five points and a steal in the first two minutes and 32 seconds.
Five minutes into the game, Springfield had the upper hand by the score of 9-7. The tides turned when the Engineers embarked on a 12-1 run that put them up by nine points. Yet, the Pride were able to stay in the game and tie the game at 25 with less than three minutes left in the first half. Stiff defense was a difference maker for Springfield early on, as they forced 12 turnovers while only giving the ball away four times.
In the second half, MIT began to break away. It remained very tight for a small portion of the second half, as the game was tied 38-38 four minutes into it. However, the Engineers went on a 15-3 run that gave them a 12-point lead. MIT had a five-point lead or better from this point on. Chatziveroglou continued his dominance with 14 points in the second half.
In the loss, Blauner led Springfield in scoring with 18 points, and was impactful on the other side of the ball with three steals. Fellow underclassmen Jacob Morales and Nick Bray followed him with 13 points each.
A takeaway from Wednesday night’s matchup was Springfield’s will to go the extra mile.
“I definitely think a positive was effort,” said Brock.
Their game against MIT was their third loss in a row, and they look to make improvements to snap the streak.
“(What we need to work on is) just playing together,” said Lindsay. “I know we had a lot of plays where guys were driving and taking them one-on-three. And we just got to know where to find each other on offense.”
Springfield will look to snap their streak on Feb. 5 at Wheaton, which is a team they previously defeated this season. Their next game at Blake Arena takes place Feb. 9 against Babson.
Photo: Joe Arruda/The Student