PITTSBURGH, Pa. – The Brandeis University men's basketball team got a season-high-tying 26 points from grad student Collin Sawyer (New London, Conn./New London), but it wasn't enough as the Judges fell in a University Athletic Association contest at Carnegie Mellon, 78-72. With the loss, the Judges fall to 10-7 overall, 2-5 UAA, while the Tartans improve to 11-8, 4-5 UAA.

Sawyer scored 18 of his 26 points in the second half. He shot 8-of-19 from the field, including 6-of-15 from 3-point range and 4-of-7 from the line. Sawyer's six 3-pointers tied his career-high, set three times previously. He also had a career-high four steals in the contest. The Judges had two other players score in double figures – grad student Tommy Eastman (Honeoye Falls, N.Y./Honeoye Falls-Lima) and senior Nolan Hagerty (Yarmouth, Maine/Yarmouth) – who each scored 11 points. Eastman grabbed a team-high nine rebounds, while Hagerty dished out a squad-best three assists. The Judges shot 34% from the floor (25-74), while CMU hit 51% (27-53). The Tartans also had a 35%-31% advantage from 3-point range.

CMU was paced by a career-high 29 points off the bench from Jack Stone, who hit 8-of-9 overall, 4-of-5 from deep, and 9-of-10 from the line. He also grabbed six rebounds. Kevin Sax added 16 points on 6-of-6 from the field and 4-of-5 from the line, while R.J. Holmes had 15 points. Both players tied with Eastman for game-high honors with nine rebounds. Holmes also blocked three shots. Josh Berry led all players with five assists.

Sawyer scored nine points of his in the first 3:11 of the second half, when the Judges outscored the Tartans, 13-4, to take a 41-36 lead, their largest of the game. Unfortunately, the Judges couldn't hang on, as CMU went on to score 12 straight at one point in the stanza. The Tartans took a 58-45 lead on a Holmes jumper with 9:42 left in the game, and the hosts never looked back. A Stone 3-pointer gave them their largest lead, 65-51, with just under eight minutes to go. The Judges pushed back within five on a Sawyer trifecta with 38 seconds to go, but it was too little, too late.

Brandeis returns to action on Sunday afternoon when they take on #24 Case Western Reserve in Cleveland.