MIDDLETOWN, Conn. – Senior duo Jordan James '22 and Sam Peek '22 both had strong performances to lead the Wesleyan men's basketball team past visiting Husson, 81-61, in an NCAA Tournament First Round matchup at Silloway Gymnasium on Friday night.
Wesleyan (25-3) wins an NCAA Tournament game for just the second time in program history, advancing to the Second Round where they will meet RPI on Saturday. Tip-off is set for 7:40 PM from Silloway Gymnasium. RPI (22-5), who leads the nation in scoring defense (57.5), defeated Nichols 78-58 earlier Friday night in Silloway.
The Cardinals, who came in ranked 11th nationally in field goal percentage (49.3), shot over 50 percent in both the first (18-34 FG; 52.9%) and second half (15-28 FG; 53.6%) eventually pulling away midway through the second half. James, who is ranked No. 2 nationally in field goal percentage, only increased his mark for the season as he went 9-for-10 from the floor on his way to 18 points and seven rebounds. Peek got after the glass himself, grabbing a career-high eight offensive rebounds on his way to his fifth double-double of the season (15 points, 12 rebounds).
The first half was tight throughout as Wesleyan and Husson traded baskets in the early going before DJ Bussey hit a fallaway jumper to give the Eagles a 10-9 lead just four minutes in. Not fazed by the early shooting from the visitors, James connected on a hook shoot, followed by consecutive makes from Peek as the Cardinals countered with a 6-0 run to claim a 14-9 lead.
Wesleyan's lead hovered around five points before a 7-0 spurt pushed their advantage to double digits at 23-13. Antone Walker '22 had scored on consecutive possessions, the first being a three-pointer followed by a pair of free throws as the senior guard capped the mini Cardinal run.
Gabe Ravetz '22 connected for a triple that made it 28-16 Wesleyan with 8:48 remaining in the half but as he did throughout this one, Husson guard Justice Kendall was lights-out from the floor as the senior guard answered right back with a deep three to follow the Ravetz triple and on the next Eagle possession, Kendall hit again falling away.
The biggest Cardinal lead, backed up by the loudest roar from the home faithful, came on the fast break as Preston Maccoux '23 looked to his right where James was waiting for a thundering dunk to give Wesleyan a 34-21 advantage. The Cardinals nearly closed the half with a double-digit lead up until Kendall hit once again from deep, cutting the Wesleyan lead down to 42-34 at the break.
The North Atlantic Conference Champion Husson continued to battle and came to within six of the lead on two occasions in the first 74 seconds of the second half. Needing a spark, Wesleyan got one with points coming on four straight possessions as Peek and Ravetz traded makes to rebuild Wesleyan's double-digit lead.
Wesleyan's game-deciding run came midway through the second half when the Cardinals rattled off a 12-1 run that opened up a 22-point lead at 69-47 with 8:34 remaining. Five different Cardinals scored in the +11 spurt including a steal from Nicky Johnson '25 that quickly turned into two points as the first-year point guard carried upcourt and found Maccoux with a bounce pass that was dunked home by the junior wing.
That 22-point lead was the largest of the game for Wesleyan as the strong Cardinal crowd enjoyed the final 8+ minutes, cheering the Cardinals on to an NCAA Tournament win.
Among the other key contributors in the Wesleyan lineup included 11 points, including a 3-for-5 showing from three, to go along with five rebounds and four assists for Ravetz. Walker came off the bench and scored 12 points. Johnson tallied eight points, seven assists, six rebounds, three steals and just one turnovers in a team-leading 36 minutes. Maccoux added seven points, six rebounds and four assists while Shackylle Dezonie '23 came through with eight points and six rebounds off the bench.
The Cardinals dominated the rebounding, sporting a +21 rebounding margin (47-26) including a +10 advantage in offensive boards over the Eagles. Wesleyan outscored Husson 30-10 in fast break points and 22-8 in bench points.
Kendall was dynamic offensively for the Eagles, scoring a game-high 23 points (10-19 FG) with four rebounds and four assists. Bussey added 18 points for the Eagles who finish their season with a 15-10 record.
Wesleyan heads into a Second Round matchup against RPI with a Sweet 16 spot on the line. This will be the 11th all-time meeting between the two teams but the first since. The teams are level at 5-5 against one another in the all-time series.