Johnny McCarthy makes his numbers count for the Amherst College men’s basketball team. In an NCAA Division 3 second-round game against SUNY-Cortland, and Amherst trailing by 1, the sophomore wing from Medfield ripped down a defensive rebound, sprinted down the court, and drew a foul following up a teammate’s missed shot. The 6-foot-5 McCarthy drained both free throws with 5 seconds left in a 69-68 victory that enabled Amherst to continue its run to last week’s national semifinals in Salem, Va.
Starting all 32 games, in a team-high 32.4 minutes per game, McCarthy averaged 13.0 points, six rebounds, and 1.9 assists per game for Amherst (26-6).
The 20-year-old economics major attended Medfield High and then was an all-Independent School League selection in football, basketball and baseball at Noble and Greenough in Dedham.
“Johnny fills the stat sheet because of his desire and his basketball IQ,’’ said Dave Hixon, in his 39th season as head coach at Amherst. “In that respect, he reminds me of his dad.’’
McCarthy’s father, Atty. John McCarthy, Jr., captained the football and basketball teams at Amherst before graduating in 1988. His grandfather, John Joseph McCarthy, was a guard in the NBA, including a final injury-shortened season with the Celtics in 1964. McCarthy’s mother, Susan, a teacher at Tenacre Country Day School in Wellesley, was a three-sport athlete at Amherst (Class of 1986).
Q. How do you put your team’s NCAA performance in perspective?
A. We have a lot to be proud of. However, whenever you end your season on a loss, it’s always disappointing. But it also gives us some confidence heading into next year about how we stack up against the rest of the country.
Q. Is there a special pride being coached by the same man who coached your dad at Amherst?
A. It’s pretty cool and unique being coach Hixon’s first second-generation player.
Q. What were you thinking before and after the two crucial free throws against SUNY-Cortland?
A. I put myself in a practice-like atmosphere and just wanted to shoot with confidence. It reminded me of being a kid ending a shootaround in the driveway and dreaming about that kind of situation.
Q. What has been your reaction to coach Hixon having you guard the opposition’s toughest offensive players?
A. To make everything for them difficult and knowing if I can do that we have a good chance to win.
Q. What are a couple of your favorite memories as an athlete at Nobles?
A. In football, my senior year in our last game we beat Milton Academy, 14-13, to ruin their undefeated season. I had a 45-yard touchdown catch and a fumble recovery. AIso, hitting a 3-pointer my junior year in the first round of the NEPSAC playoffs with 40 seconds left to put us ahead for good against Cheshire Academy.
Q. What has been your favorite course at Amherst?
A. Archival Exploration. We had classes in the basement of Frost Library where the archives are kept and I wrote three papers for the course.
Q. What parts of your game did you work on the most prior to this season?
A. Improving the arc on my shot, ball handling, working to get my own shot and getting to the basket more.
Q. Your grandfather is part of the answer to a trivia question. What is it?
A. He is the first of only three NBA players to record a triple-double in their playoff debut. The others are Magic Johnson and LeBron James. (In the 1960 playoffs, playing guard for the St. Louis Hawks, McCarthy registered 13 points, 11 rebounds, and 11 assists against the Minneapolis Lakers).
Q. What do you enjoy most about living in Amherst?
A. It’s a great college town with a boarding high school feel. Antonio’s Pizza is a fun spot in the center of town and in the spring I play at least once a week at the Amherst Golf Club.
Q. What has been coach Hixon’s influence?
A. He’s the best coach I’ve ever had in any sport. He’s even keel and instills confidence.
MARVIN PAVE
For full interview, go to bostonglobe.com/west
