NEWTON, Mass. – Freshman Lawrence Sabir (Pawtucket, R.I. / LaSalle Academy) had the standout game of his young collegiate career on Monday night, scoring a game-high 26 points on 81.8% shooting as the Brandeis University men's basketball team downed the Lasell Lasers in Newton, 82-77. The Judges picked up their first win of the season, moving to 1-2, while Lasell fell to 0-3.

Sabir scored 18 of his 26 points in the second half, as the Judges outscored the Lasers 43-33 to overcome a five-point halftime deficit. The key run for Brandeis started with a Sabir jump shot with 12:30 remaining in the second to cut the Lasell lead to 58-55. The Judges then went on to score eight more consecutive points, taking a 63-58 lead. Brandeis stretched the lead out as far as 10 before Lasell narrowed it to 80-77 with 10 seconds remaining. Junior Corey Sherman (Penn Valley, Penn. / Lower Merion) iced the game with eight seconds left, making two free throws to make the score 82-77.

Senior Latye Workman (Brooklyn, N.Y. / Bedford Academy) also had an excellent night, picking up his first career double-double. Workman tied his career-high with 16 points and set his career-high with a game-leading 15 rebounds, including seven offensive rebounds. Rookies Semih Say (Istanbul, Turkey / Brewster Academy) and Akim Sanni (Portsmouth, N.H. / Tabor Academy) also set career-highs in scoring, with 14 and 10 points respectively. Say also had a game-high four steals.

As a team, the Judges won the turnover battle, 19-9, converting that into a 19-10 advantage in points off turnovers. Brandeis also shot 40.7% (24-59) from the field and 72.1% (31-43) from the line.

Scott Arsenault starred off the bench for the Lasers, scoring 24 points on 81.8% shooting (9-11), including 5-7 from beyond the three-point arc. Stefan Masciarelli had a double-double, with ten points and a team-high ten assists. Derek McMahon and Victor Collazo also reached double-digits in points, with 12, while Brandon Vila led the glass-cleaning with 11 rebounds. Lasell shot 44.4% from the field and 72.7% from the free-throw line, and outrebounded Brandeis, 42-40.

Brandeis is back in action after over a week off on Tuesday, November 28, when they play at UMass-Dartmouth at 7 PM. Lasell also plays that night, traveling to New Hampshire to take on Keene St. at 7 PM.

--Corey Cohen