It was a banner night for the Brandeis men's basketball team's two senior captains, as both Ben Bartoldus (Hillsborough, N.H./Proctor Acad. (N.H.)) and Derek Retos (No. Attleboro, Mass./Brimmer and May School) etched their names in the Judges' record book. Bartoldus became the 31st player in Brandeis history to tally 1,000-career points, while Retos tied the school record in career 3-pointers.
Unfortunately for the Judges, those accomplishments came in a loss, as Brandeis fell at home to No. 4 Washington University in St. Louis, 95-82. The Judges fall to 11-10 overall, 3-7 in University Athletic Association (UAA) play. The Bears are 19-2 overall, 10-0 in conference.
Bartoldus entered the game with 979 career points, needing just 21 to reach the milestone. He got exactly that, finishing 8-of-10 from the field including a pair of 3-pointers. The senior guard got off to a scorching start, scoring 10 points in the first seven minutes, and had 14 by halftime. His 999th and 1000th points came on a strong drive to the basket with 5:26 left in the game.
Retos needed two 3-pointers to tie Steve Harrington '92 for the most treys in Brandeis history. The sharpshooter hit his first of the game with 7:40 left in the first half but had to wait until the last basket of the game to hit his record-tying 209th longball.
The Judges got off to a strong start, controlling a small lead over the Bears for most of the first half. A layup by junior Ishmael Kalilou (Windsor, Conn./Taft School) stretched Brandeis' lead to 22-15, and Retos' first 3-pointer put Brandeis ahead, 25-20. But WashU quickly battled back, tying the game at 27. The Bears took the lead for good on a pair of free throws with 4:17 left, closing the first half on a 17-7 run to take a 48-38 lead into the break.
Bartoldus had 14 points for the Judges in the first half, while the Bears' trio of Alan Aboona (Wheeling, Ill./St. Viator), Chris Klimek (Inverness, Ill./William Fremd) and Matt Palucki (Park Ridge, Ill./Maine South) combined for 41 of their teams 48 points.
Brandeis battled back early in the second half, getting as close as seven on two separate occasions. Unfortunately, the Judges could get no closer, and at 60-53, WashU went on a 12-0 run to balloon its advantage to 19. The run was led by Palucki, who scored 12 points on 5-of-5 shooting over a five-minute span. The Judges never got closer than 12 the rest of the way.
Brandeis shot 51.8% from the field, including 12-for-24 from downtown and 12-for-13 from the charity stripe. However, WashU shot a season-best 60.9% from the field and 60% from behind the 3-point line. Palucky led the way, pouring in a career-high 32 points on 11-16 shooting. Aboona scored a season high 30 as the senior finished 6-of-7 from deep and 10-of-10 at the line. Klimek finished with 17.
WashU extended its winning streak to 14 games and wrapped up at least a share of the UAA title.
Brandeis seniors Alex Stoyle (Goffstown, N.H./Tilton School), Ruben Kanya (Ottawa, Ontario/Bridgton Acad. (Maine)) and Gabriel Moton (St. Petersburg, Fla./St. Petersburg) each scored 10 points to join Bartoldus in double figures. All three finished 2-for-3 from behind the arc. Moton also dished out a game-high six assists.
The Judges host the University of Chicago on Sunday at noon. The Bears travel to NYU to take on the Violets in a game that will be held at 11 a.m.