NEW LONDON, Conn. – In the final game of their season-opening five-game road stretch, the Brandeis University men's basketball team dropped a tightly contested battle at Connecticut College, 84–78, despite leading for over 24 minutes and a standout performance by senior Elias Rodl (Berlin, Germany/Schulund Leistungssportzentrum Berlin).

TEAM RECORDS

• Brandeis, 2-3.
• Connecticut College, 3-0.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Brandeis opened with steady scoring from Rodl, first-year Gur Dhillon (Frisco, Texas/Brewster Acad. (N.H.)), and sophomore Alex Zakheim (Bergenfield, N.J./Perkiomen, Pa.), building a 24–21 lead and later taking the lead again 35–30 after back-to-back shots by Dhillon, Zakheim, and Rodl.
• The Judges led for 9:41 of game time in the first half and took a 37–34 advantage into halftime.
• Early in the second half, Brandeis produced its strongest run of the game. The Judges hit four threes in a six-minute span, two by junior Ali Kaan Bek (Istanbul, Turkey/Koc School) and two by sophomore Ryan Weiss (Hewlett, N.Y./North Broward Prep), while Rodl and Zakheim added two layups to fuel a 25–15 stretch from the start of the half.
• With 9:57 remaining on the clock, Brandeis held its largest lead of 13 points, 62–49.
• Connecticut immediately flipped the game with a decisive 17–3 run, hitting four straight threes to erase the margin in under three minutes.
• A three-pointer with 4:53 on the clock gave the Camels their first lead of the half, 66–65.
• In total, Connecticut hit ten second-half threes and they outscored Brandeis 35–16 through the last ten minutes of the second half.
• The Camels extended the lead to 76–71 entering the final two minutes.
• Rodl scored five late points, including a three that made it 82–78, but Connecticut closed the game with two more free throws to secure the 84–78 result.
• This was the teams' second meeting all-time; Brandeis won the first match-up in 2022, 63–48.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

• Rodl led all scorers with a season-high (and matching his career-high) of 27 points, adding 7 assists (also a season-high) and 6 rebounds in another standout performance.
• Weiss recorded 15 points, while Zakheim posted 14 points and a team-high and season-high 8 rebounds.
• Kaan Bek chipped in a season-high 12 points, all three-pointers.
• Brandeis outrebounded Connecticut, 37–29, but the Camels made up the difference by scoring 29 points off 19 Brandeis turnovers, while the Judges scored only 15 points off Connecticut's 9 turnovers.
• Connecticut also held a 12–3 advantage in second-chance points, capitalizing on key late possessions.

UP NEXT

• The Judges will make their season home debut on Tuesday, Nov. 25, at 7 p.m., hosting Clark University at the Gosman Athletic Center.