Brandeis Men's Basketball Cruises Past Rochester, 83-66

Gabriel Moton '14 (Photo by Sportspix.biz/Mike Broglio)
Gabriel Moton '14 (Photo by Sportspix.biz/Mike Broglio)

WALTHAM, Mass.- The Brandeis University men's basketball team rounded out the first night of their inaugural Hoopscoming celebration with an 83-66 victory over the visiting University of Rochester Yellowjackets in a University Athletic Association (UAA) tilt at Red Auerbach Arena. Even scoring helped the Judges pull away in the second half as four players reached double-figures. Brandeis improved to 9-6 (1-3 UAA) while the Yellowjackets fell to 7-8 (1-3 UAA).

The first half saw the Judges struggle from the field. Brandeis went 3-for-12 from beyond the arc while Rochester was 5-for-12 . With 9:35 to play in the period, a trifecta from rookie guard Sam Borst-Smith (San Pedro, Calif./Lawrenceville School (N.J.)) gave the Yellowjackets their largest lead at 20-15. The squads continued to go back and forth from there with four ties and seven lead changes. The last tie of the half came with 3:06 on the clock when senior guard Ben Bartoldus (Hillsborough, N.H./Proctor Acad. (N.H.)) hit a reverse lay-up to knot the game at 30-30. That started a quick 8-0 run for Brandeis as Bartoldus hit a 3-pointer the next time down the floor and senior guard Gabriel Moton (St. Petersburg, Fla./St. Petersburg) added another make from beyond the arc to give the Judges a 36-30 advantage. Rochester made the final basket of the period on a jumper from rookie guard Mack Montague (Westport, Conn./Suffield Academy) as Brandeis took a 36-32 lead into the break.

The second half was all Judges as they never trailed again and shot a scorching 64% from the field, including 6-for-8 from behind the arc. Brandeis slowly built their lead and had a double-digit advantage when senior guard Derek Retos (No. Attleboro, Mass./Brimmer and May School) drained a trifecta to make it 55-45 with 12:25 to play. The closest the Yellowjackets would get from there was a lay-up by Borst-Smith that cut the deficit to 57-50 with 11:19 on the clock. On the other end, Retos answered with another shot from downtown and the lead never went below double-digits again. The Judges' margin ballooned to 19 with 2:02 remaining after a pair of free throws from Moton as the final tally was an 83-66 victory.

Brandeis was led by Moton who scored a game-high 21 points while shooting 7-for-11 from the field and a perfect 5-for-5 from the line. Bartoldus joined him in double-figures with 17 points while Retos came off the bench to score 11, including three trifectas, and rookie guard Robinson Vilmont (Cambridge, Mass./Wilbraham and Monson Acad.) rounded out the bunch with 10 points of his own. Senior center Youri Dascy (Fall River, Mass./St. Andrews School (R.I.)) led the squad with seven rebounds while Vilmont and sophomore guard Colby Smith (No. Andover, Mass./No. Andover) shared game-high honors with four assists apiece.

Rochester was led by junior forward Tyler Sankes (Rochester, N.Y./McQuaid Jesuit) who poured in 16 points while Montague joined him in double-digits with 12. Montague and sophomore forward Dylan Peretz (Pound Ridge, N.Y./Fox Lane) each pulled down five rebounds to lead the quad. Borst-Smith had a team-high three assists.

The Judges continue their Hoopscoming weekend on Sunday January 26th with a 12:00 p.m. matchup against UAA rival Emory University. The Yellowjackets stay on the road for a UAA contest against NYU at 1:00 p.m. on Sunday January 26th