NORTH DARTMOUTH, Mass. (courtesy UMass Dartmouth sports information) -The University of Massachusetts Dartmouth men's basketball team used a 19-4 first half run to build a 13-point lead late in the first half and went on to defeat visiting Brandeis, 68-54, in a non-conference game at the Tripp Athletic Center Tuesday evening.

Trailing, 16-14 with eight minutes remaining in the first half, the Corsairs got a three-pointer from senior guard Paul Rose (Boston, Mass./North Cambridge Catholic) to take the lead. Senior center Lance Greene (Dorchester, Mass./Charlestown) followed with a pair of free throws, sophomore forward Eleazar Clayton (Boston, Mass./East Boston) added a layup, and sophomore guard John Genkos (Worcester, Mass.) hit a jump shot and followed that with a 3-pointer to make it 26-16.

Brandeis sophomore center Youri Dascy (Fall River, Mass./St. Andrew's School, R.I.) interrupted the run with a layup, but rookie center Alex Rodrigues (Fall River, Mass./Durfee) sandwiched a pair of baskets around a layup by the Judges' senior forward Vytas Kriskus (Kvedarna, Lithuania/Holderness School, N.H.) before UMD senior forward Colin Burns (Chepachet, R.I./Ponaganset) punctuated the run with a three-pointer to make it 33-20 with 2:45 left in the firsthalf. The Corsairs led at halftime, 35-22.

Greene paced UMD with 14 points, seven rebounds, five blocked shots and four assists. Rose and Clayton each had 10 points, with Clayton also grabbing seven rebounds. Dascy of the Judges scored a season-high 20 points, but he was the only Brandeis player in double figures. Dascy and Kriskus also tied for team-high honors with five rebounds.

Both team see their records move to 2-2 on the season after the contest. The loss denied Brandeis head coach Brian Meehan his first chance to become the 11th active Division III head coach with 300 career wins. Meehan's next chance will come Sunday afternoon at 3 p.m. against Rhode Island College in a rematch of a 2010 NCAA tournament game.