SPRINGFIELD, Mass. – For the second game in a row, the Brandeis University men's basketball team erased a double-digit deficit in the second half, only for their opponents to get off the mat and escape with a win as the Judges fell at Western New England University, 64-57, tonight.

TEAM RECORDS

• Brandeis, 0-2.
• Western New England, 2-0.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• After a first half that featured four ties and seven lead changes, WNEU closed the stanza on an 11-2 run to take a 33-24 lead into the break.
• The Golden Bears then scored the first four points of the second half to take their largest lead of the game at 13 points, 37-24, with 18:19 remaining.
• Brandeis didn't let the hosts pull away, scoring the game's next six points to get back within seven at 38-31 on a jumper from grad transfer JJ Hayes (Hilton Head, S.C./Hilton Head Prep) with 16:33 left.
• The Judges got several stops in a row, but were unable to capitalize. They finally got within two possession on a three-point play by senior Matthew Cadogan (Weston, Fla./St. Thomas Aquinas) that made it 44-40 with 10:37 on the clock.
• WNE answered with their first and only 3-pointer of the game, putting them back on top by seven midway through the period, 47-40.
• Back-to-back 3-pointers by Brandeis senior Elias Rodl (Berlin, Germany/Schulund Leistungssportzentrum Berlin) got the visitors within one at 47-46 with 7:31 to go.
• The teams traded scoring possessions until Brandeis junior transfer Gur Dhillon (Frisco, Texas/Brewster Academy, N.H.) connected from beyond the arc to tie the game at 57-all with 2:26 remaining.
• Unfortunately, the Judges were unable to get over the hump, as those were their final points of the game. WNE's Matt Houde made a lay-up that gave the home team the lead for good, and he had a steal that led to a Luka Vladkovic jumper to make it a 61-57 WNEU lead with 1:11 on the clock.
• The Judges were unable to get any closer as the Golden Bears closed things out at the line.
• It marked the second time the Judges came from 10 points down in the second half to tie the game, having erased a 10-point deficit with five minutes left against Babson to reach overtime before falling.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

• Rodl led three Brandeis scorers in double figures with 14 points. He also tied with sophomore Alex Zakheim (Bergenfield, N.J./Perkiomen, Pa.) for team-high honors with seven rebounds.
• Dhillon added 12 points – 11 in the second half – and Cadogan finished with 10, eight after the break.
• Zakheim had a game-high five assists.
• Western New England's Cody Palazzesi led all players with 21 points, 13 in the second half.
• Vlajkovic posted a double-double with 14 points and a game-high 10 rebounds.
• For the game, rebounding was even at 36-all. WNE owned an 18-8 margin in turnovers and converted them into a 16-9 scoring advantage.
• Brandeis outscored WNE, 21-3, from beyond the arc, but the Golden Bears had a 42-26 scoring margin in the paint. They also had an 11-4 edge scoring from the free-throw line, taking 20 foul shots to just five for the Judges.

UP NEXT

• Brandeis will continue a five-game road trip to open the season on Sunday afternoon at Bowdoin College at 3 p.m.