WALTHAM, Mass. - The Brandeis University men's basketball team,
ranked No. 22 in the nation by D3hoops.com in the preseason, opened
the season with a 90-79 victory over local rival Lasell College
tonight in Red Auerbach Arena.
Brandeis (1-0) was paced by a pair of 20-point performances that
led four players in double figures. Sophomore Vytas
Kriskus (Kvedarna, Lithuania/Holderness School) led all
players with a career-high 23 points off the bench. Kriskus
connected on seven-of-16 overall, five-of-11 from 3-point range and
all four of his free throws. Senior guard Andre
Roberson (Springfield, Mass./Wilbraham and Monson Acad.)
stuffed the stat sheet with 20 points, a career-high eight rebound
and seven assists. He reached the 20-point plateau for the fourth
time in his career on five-of-nine from the floor with one
3-pointer and nine-of-11 from the line, including six-of-seven in
the second half.
Senior guard Kenny Small (Stratford,
Conn./Stratford) added 17 points and four steals, while senior
forward Terrell Hollins (Springfield,
Mass./Longmeadow) recorded his ninth career double-double with 16
points and 10 rebounds, hitting eight of his nine shots from the
floor. The Judges outrebounded Lasell, 37-22, and owned a 24-7
scoring edge from the free throw line, taking 18 more shots from
the charity stripe and hitting 83 percent compared to 64 percent
for the Lasers.
Lasell (0-1) did the Judges one better in terms of balance,
putting five players in double figures, led by 18 from rookie guard
Lance Theard (New Orleans, La./Warren Easton). Theard had 16 of his
points in the second half, when he hit on six-of-11 from the field
and three-of-four from downtown. Senior guard Charles Horton
(Detroit, Mich./Burncoat) and sophomore forward Dominic Orlow
(Slupsk, Poland/Henry P. Becton) had 16 each. Horton scored 15 of
his points on five 3-pointers, while Orlow tallied 14 in the second
half. Sophomore forward Javon Williams (Mattapan, Mass./Cathedral)
added 13 points, while senior forward Sean Joynes (Philadelphia,
Pa./Roman Catholic) chipped in with 10. Orlow and Theard tied for
team-high honors with four rebounds, while junior guard Joey Vento
(Weymouth, Mass./Weymouth) topped the Lasers with four assists and
Williams had four steals.
Thanks to their press, Brandeis opened the game on an 11-3 run
over the first 2:23, forcing Lasell into four early turnovers that
resulted in seven points. The lead swelled to as many as 22 at
43-21 on a Kriskus trifecta with just under two minutes remaining.
The Judges took a 45-25 lead into the locker room thanks to 21
points off 16 Lasell turnovers. Roberson (12 points), Kriskus (11
points) and Small (10 points) all reached double figures before the
break.
The lead still stood at 20, 78-58, with 5:26 left, when the
Lasell press started to force the Judges into mistakes, outscoring
the Judges, 16-2, in second-half points off turnovers. Brandeis
went more than three minutes without a field goal, while the Lasers
got hot from the field. After a Theard long ball, They got within
11 at 78-67 with 3:34 to go, while a Williams foul shot got the
visitors within 10 with just over two-and-a-half minutes left.
Brandeis answered with a Hollins lay-up to push the lead back to
12, and though Lasell got within eight at 84-76 on a Horton bomb
with 42 seconds left, it was too little, too late as the Judges
hung on for the 11 point win.
Brandeis, which avenged a three-point loss to Lasell in last
season's opener, will next take on Emerson College Saturday at 5
p.m. Lasell takes on Cortland State in the opening round of the
Williams Tournament Saturday 6 p.m.
BOX SCORE
