MEDFORD, Mass. (taken from a Tufts University press release) -- Senior guard Gabriel Moton (St. Petersburg, Fla./St. Petersburg) scored 21 of his game-high 29 points in the second half as the Brandeis University men's basketball team defeated Tufts, 90-82, in the consolation game of the 5th Annual New England Big 4 Challenge at Cousens Gym Sunday afternoon.
Brandeis trailed 46-43 at the half, but shot 61.9 percent (13-21) from the field in the second half to overtake the Jumbos. Moton made all five of his three-point attempts in the second half and finished the game 7-of-8 from long range. He was named to the All-Tournament team.
A jumper by the Jumbos' All-Tournament team representative Tommy Folliard to start the second half put Tufts up 48-43. However, Brandeis worked it down to a 52-52 tie on Moton's three at the 15-minute mark. Folliard responded with a three at the other end. Brandeis rookie Tim Reale (Mason, Ohio/St. Andrews School, R.I.) answered with a lay-up, to cut the lead to one. The Judges took advantage of two Jumbo turnovers on their next two possessions. Moton connected from downtown to give Brandeis the lead for good at the 14:07 mark. The Jumbos were called for a foul in the paint while the shot was in the air, and Ben Bartoldus (Hillsborough, N.H./Proctor Acad.) connected from beyond the arc just three seconds later giving the Judges a five-point lead at 60-55, with just under six minutes elapsed, a margin they would not relinquish.
The Judges built a nine-point advantage at 67-58 following two free throws by senior Youri Dascy (Fall River, Mass./St. Andrews School, R.I.) with 9:51 to go. The Jumbos were able to get within five four times, including 79-74 on a three by Tarik Smith at 2:12. Brandeis (6-2) was able to keep Tufts (5-4) at an arm's length with free throws though to earn the victory.
Folliard and Kwame Firempong both had 11 points at halftime as the Jumbos led 46-43. Tufts shot 54.5 percent (18-33) in the half and had 10 assists, six by Oliver Cohen. Brandeis out-scored Tufts 14-7 at the free throw line in the first 20, and was careful with the ball turning it over just twice. The Judges scored 10 points off eight Jumbo turnovers. Moton's eight points led the visitors at the break.
The first half was tightly played with neither squad building more than a five-point lead. The teams were tied 42-42 following a tip-in by Firempong for Tufts at 3:13. With that as a start, Tufts scored six of the final seven points in the half to lead 46-43.
Moton added eight rebounds to his 29 points. Bartoldus recorded 16 points with five rebounds for the Judges. Alex Stoyle (Goffstown, N.H./Tilton Acad.) with 14 and Dascy with 13 were key contributors to the Brandeis scoring. Tim Reale finished with 9 points and 3 assists. The Judges shot 10-for-18 (58.8%) from three-point range in the game. A day after shooting just 10-of-26 from the line, they scored 28 points from the charlity stripe, compared to 19 by Tufts. One day after being held to more than 40 points below their season scoring average (84.5 ppg), the Judges exploded for their fourth 90-point contest of the campaign.
Firempong had 18 points, 6 rebounds and 2 assists for the Jumbos. Freshman Hunter Sabety scored 13 and sophomore Ryan Spadaford added 12. Cohen finished with nine assists. Tufts was only 5 for 18 (27.8%) from three-land.
Brandeis returns to action on Tuesday night at 7 p.m. against top-ranked and defending national champions Amherst College