WALTHAM, Mass. – The Brandeis University men's basketball team led wire-to-wire tonight, putting four players in double-digits in scoring – including three newcomers – as the Judges defeated Rivier University, 97-71, in Red Auerbach Arena tonight. With the win, the Judges, ranked #25 in Division III by D3hoops.com, improve to 1-0, while the Raiders fall to 0-1.
The Judges were paced by senior Nolan Hagerty (Yarmouth, Maine/Yarmouth), who finished with a career- and game-high 22 points on 10-of-12 shooting from the field with a pair of free throws. He also led the Judges with seven rebounds, including three on the offensive glass, and had three assists. Front-court mate Tommy Eastman (Honeoye Falls, N.Y. / Honeoye Falls-Lima), a graduate transfer from Middlebury College, stuffed the stat sheet with 15 points, a game-high six assists, five rebounds, two blocked shots and a steal. Eastman's six assists were one fewer than the entire Rivier roster.
First-year forward Toby Harris (Durham, N.C. / Durham Acad.) added 13 points in 19 minutes off the bench thanks to a 3-of-4 performance from beyond the arc, while junior guard Terrell Brown (Lowell, Mass. / Proctor Academy), a transfer from Robert Morris University, added 12 points, five rebounds, four assists, and three steals.
The Judges, who never trailed in the game, outrebounded Rivier, 46-39, and had a 22-7 advantage in assists. They also outscored the Raiders, 23-14, in points off turnovers, winning the miscue battle, 17-11. Brandeis opened the game on a 9-0 run and never looked back. They closed the first half on a 12-6 run to take a 47-30 lead into halftime, with Hagerty and Eastman each scoring 12 points in the opening stanza.
An early 14-6 run by Rivier to start the second half got the Raiders within nine at 53-44 with 16:06 to go, but the Judges' next five possessions all yielded three points, including two three-point plays by Hagerty and two 3-pointers by Harris, the second of which increased the score to 68-47 with 12:43 to go in the game. Brandeis would lead by as many as 32 with 5:01 remaining before the final 26-point margin of victory.
Rivier had three players score in double figures, with Miles Gillette turning in a double-double performance with 18 points and a game-high 10 rebounds. Nikolas Pignone added 12 points off the bench, and Nesta Roberts scored 10 points. Each had five rebounds, along with Colin Boucher. Gillette and Pharaoh Davis each had two assists. Davis, the Raiders leading returning scorer, was limited to just 11 minutes because of foul trouble.
Brandeis returns to action next Thursday evening at Emerson College for a 7 p.m. tip. Rivier plays host to Mass. College of Liberal Arts on Saturday at 1 p.m.
