By Dave Johnson
W&M Athletics

WILLIAMSBURG - The difference between second and sixth place in the Colonial Athletic Association, at least this season, is five points.
 
Going into the final week of the regular season, William & Mary (20-10, 12-5) has clinched no worse than the No. 2 seed in the conference tournament. The Tribe can thank, in large part, its 6-0 record in games decided by five points or fewer.
 
Northeastern (14-14, 8-8), on the other hand, currently resides in sixth place. The Huskies can blame, in large part, their 1-7 record in games decided by five points or fewer.
 
No one expected William & Mary to be a 20-win team and one of the tournament's top seeds. And it wouldn't be without being able to remain composed in tight situations, the latest coming Saturday's 78-74 win at James Madison.
 
"They made run after run after run, and every single time, our guys were able to answer the bell and make the next play," W&M coach Dane Fischer said. "There was never any panic, never a time where our guys were concerned about 'What do we do here?'
 
"They just have a great way about them in terms of keeping their poise. The other thing we talk about is being able to execute our stuff and being able to make free throws down the stretch."
 
Two of those six wins, each against Northeastern, came on baskets by Nathan Knight in the final two seconds. Knight also had an XXL 3-point play with 22 seconds left to seal a 77-72 win over Drexel.
 
The Tribe held on to beat Delaware 81-77 by making five of six free throws in the final 29 seconds. Andy Van Vliet went 2-for-2 with five seconds remaining to clinch a 74-73 win at Elon.
 
"If you can do those things in a close game," Fischer said, "you're going to give yourself a chance."
 
The Tribe is guaranteed a top-two finish, but it wasn't long ago that many wondered if its season was turning into a pumpkin. Consecutive losses to Hofstra, Charleston, and UNCW had dropped the Tribe into a tie for fourth place in the standings.
 
"What I'm most pleased about with about this group is how we've responded from that Charleston-Wilmington weekend in addition to a few games before that when we weren't playing great," Fischer said. "We really focused on practice and trying to play at as high a level as we can.
 
"That message will be the same down the stretch. This is the time of year, you've to play really good basketball, and you've got to be able to win a couple of different ways."
 
W&M beat Madison without a dominant performance, at least statistically, from Knight. He was held to 12 points, his second-lowest total of the season, and was 3-of-8 from the field.
 
But the Tribe got a career day from Luke Loewe, who scored 27 points on 10-of-11 shooting, 6-of-7 from the 3-point arc. His layup with 1:33 remaining gave W&M the lead for good.
 
"That was an incredible performance," Fischer said. "He's played at such a high level all year. He shoots such a great percentage because he takes really good shots. He's playing with a ton of confidence, and his coaches and teammates have a ton of confidence in him."
 
The Tribe's final game of the regular season is Saturday afternoon against Elon (11-19, 7-10) at Kaplan Arena. W&M and the Phoenix will have a rare six-day break between games.
 
"We took Sunday and Monday off, which is nice for our guys," Fischer said. "The last time we had two days off in a row was Christmas.
 
"Then we just need to manage getting our guys ready for Saturday. Then we'll think about what we want to do as we prepare for hopefully playing three games in three days."
 
Fischer said guard Thornton Scott, who has missed the last four games with a lower leg injury, is expected to play Saturday.
 
NOTES: Some tidbits Tribe SID Kris Sears: In two games against James Madison this season, Loewe scored 45 points on 17-of-19 shooting from the field, 10-of-12 from the 3-point arc. … Combined, the W&M men and women have more road wins (21) than any other school in Division I. Gonzaga is next with 20. … This is only the fourth time in the program's history that W&M has won 20 games in the regular season. … A win Saturday would tie the school record for CAA wins with 13, which was set by the 1997-98 team. … With 619 points, Knight is one of only two players (with Chet Giermak '50) to have two seasons of 600 or more points.