SWARTHMORE, Pa.—No. 1 Swarthmore College Men's Basketball ran past the Haverford College Fords 71-53 on Wednesday night, handing the upstart Fords (11-3, 6-1) their first loss in Centennial Conference action this season.
Swarthmore, now the only team with a perfect Centennial record (7-0) this season, improved to 14-0 overall in the 2019-20 season.
A 9-0 start off of three consecutive 3-pointers was a harbinger of good things to come for the Garnet. After making their first three attempts, the Garnet finished the game with an impressive 50 percent success from 3-point range (9-for-18) and an even 50 percent from the floor as well (28-for-56). Swarthmore cashed in on 6-of-8 free throw attempts.
Swarthmore made eight of its 3-pointers in the first half to break the game open. Sophomore George Visconti sank the first two triples of the game and finished with 11 points. Freshman Vinny Deangelo hit the next trey to start a team-leading 14 point night.
Zac O'Dell dropped in 12 points on 6-of-9 shooting and had seven rebounds, five assists and three steals. Conor Harkins buried three from long distance and ended with 11 points. Nate Shafer, Ryan Ingram and Colin Shaw each added seven.
Swarthmore never trailed, but Haverford did pull within two midway through the first half. A great backdoor cut that led to a layup for Harkins sparked an 18-2 Swarthmore run. Visconti capped the run with 4:38 to go in the first after sinking his third 3-pointer of the game.
The Garnet pushed the lead to 24 points in the second half and a flawlessly executed alley-oop slam dunk by O'Dell from Ryan Ingram punctuated the Garnet victory.
Swarthmore hits the road on Saturday for a 4 p.m. date with Dickinson College (1-13 record).
