NASHUA, N.H. – In just the third-ever meeting between the two teams, the host Rivier University Raiders opened the second half on an 18-8 run to blow open a six-point contest and defeat the Brandeis University Judges in Nashua today.

TEAM RECORDS

• Brandeis: 1-1.
• RIvier: 3-1.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• The first half was back-and-forth in the early going, with six ties and six lead changes.
• Brandeis owned a slim 14-12 lead midway through the first half after a steal and lay-up by sophomore Ethan Edwards (Brooklyn, N.Y./Woodstock Acad.).
• Rivier's Ra'quan Groves answered with a lay-up of own that kicked off a 6-0 run by the home team, giving them an 18-14 lead they would not relinquish.
• The Judges were within two at 20-18 after another Edwards swipe that led to a bucket, but Groves and teammate O'Darius Cade hit back-to-back 3-pointers to give the Raiders their biggest lead of the half, 26-18, with 3:29 to go.
• The Judges got back within three points when junior Toby Harris (Durham, N.C./Durham Academy) hit three free-throws after getting fouled from beyond the arc, but Cade answered with a trifecta of his own. Harris had a dunk with 19 seconds left, but Cade drew a foul with a second left of the clock and hit both from the line to give Rivier a 37-31 lead at the break.
• In the second half, the Raiders opened up with another Cade 3-ball, while Devin Owens dialed long distance to push the hosts' lead into double digits at 45-33 with16:46 on the clock.
• Rivier's opening run would extend to 18-8, and the Raiders led by as many as 22 points before the final 17-point margin.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

• Brandeis was led by Harris, who scored a team-high 16 points. He hit 5-of-12 overall, 3-of-7 from 3-point range and 3-of-3 from the line.
• Edwards and senior Sam Adusei (Worcester, Mass./St. George's School) each had nine points.
• Senior Aedan Using (Old Lyme, Conn./Old Lyme) had a game-high nine rebounds – five on the offensive glass – and three blocked shots.
• Rivier put four players in double digits in scoring, with Cade and Ahamadou Sillah each finishing with 18 points. Owens added 15 and Groves had 12 off the bench.
• Cade led the Raiders with eight rebounds, while Robenson Baguidy had eight assists – two more than the entire Brandeis roster.
• After the teams were relatively even in shooting in the first half (44.4% for Brandeis to 43.8% for Rivier), the Raiders had a 46.2% to 27.6% advantage in the second.
• The Raiders also shot 45.5% from 3-point range (10-22) compared to 26.3% for the Judges (5-19). The hosts also won the turnover battle, 21-17, thought points off the turnovers were just 17-16 in favor of the Raiders.

UP NEXT

• Brandeis returns to action Wednesday afternoon before Thanksgiving at 1 p.m  when they head to Babson.