Men's Basketball Wins Holiday Tournament, Improves to 9-0
![Men's basketball team](/sites/default/files/styles/main_page_image/public/assets/images/news-events/mens_bb_crop.jpg.webp?itok=0j7UvUG3)
Swarthmore College men's basketball team (9-0, 3-0) continued its red-hot start to the 2015-16 season, downing Wells College 103-66 on Sunday afternoon to win the Garnet Holiday Tournament Championship. Six players scored in double figures as the Garnet improved to 9-0, one of the best starts to a season in the 114-year history of the men's basketball program.
Zack Yonda '18 of Berwyn, Pa., and Robbie Walsh '18 of Summit, N.J., were named to the All-Tournament team. The two were unstoppable in the first half, scoring 26 of the Garnet's first 28 points and giving Swarthmore a 15-point lead 13 minutes into the game. Yonda finished with a game-high 23 points on eight-of-11 (72.7 percent) shooting, including five-for-seven (71.4 percent) from three-point range. Walsh added 12 points on five-of-six shooting (83.3 percent) and had seven rebounds and three blocks. For his efforts, Yonda was named the Centennial Conference Player of the Week
Forward Chris Bourne '17, a biology and Spanish major from Monmouth Junction, N.J., who leads the team in scoring (16.3 points per game), chipped in 14 points and seven rebounds. Swarthmore had major contributions off the bench, tallying 46 bench points. Andrew Kauffman '18 of Acton, Mass., went a perfect five-for-five en route to 14 points. Henry Cousineau '19 of Minneapolis, Minn., knocked down four three-pointers for 12 points, and classmate Christian Rhodes '19 of La Habra, Calif., scored 11 points.
Under the direction of fourth-year head coach Landry Kosmalski, the team is excelling thanks a balanced offense and stingy defense. Through nine games, the Garnet lead the Centennial Conference in scoring (77.1 points per game) and shooting percentage (49.7), with Bourne, Yonda, Walsh, and Matt Brennan '18 all averaging at least nine points per game. On defense, Swarthmore is holding opponents to a conference-best 60.8 points per game and 37.4 shooting percentage.
The Garnet is back in action on Jan. 3 at Delaware Valley College.