SWARTHMORE, Pa. – The Wesleyan men's basketball team wasn't able to solve the Swarthmore offense as the Cardinals suffered a 79-61 defeat at the hands of the Garnet on Sunday afternoon from Tarble Pavillion. The Cardinals finish the weekend with a 1-1 record while the hosts Swarthmore move to 3-0 on the season.
 
Swarthmore shot 50 percent from the floor and 42.1 percent from three, as the Cardinal defense had no answer for a balanced Garnet attack that featured five player in double figures while another had nine points.
 
Sam Pohlman '26 hit double figures for the second time this weekend, putting up a team-high 16 points on 7-of-12 shooting. Pohlman also led the Cardinals in rebounds with seven while adding two steals in 29 minutes. This was an encore performance following an 11-point, six rebound effort in yesterday's OT win over Haverford.
 
Nicky Johnson '25 posted 14 points with seven assists, four steals and four rebounds in 37 minutes but the sophomore point guard struggled shooting, going just 5-of-16 from the floor and 3-for-6 from the free throw line. Gabe Ravetz '23 was the lone other Cardinal in double figures, as the senior netted 10 points but he also struggled from the floor, going just 3-for-11.
 
Swarthmore was led by George Visconti and Vinny DeAngelo who both put up a game-high 17 points. Eddie Paquette added 16 points in 19 minutes off the bench two others had 10 points and Michael Caprise finished with nine points, 15 rebounds and two steals.
 
The Cardinals saw the Garnet open a 39-21 halftime lead which proved too much for Wesleyan to overcome in the end. Wesleyan came out with a productive start to the game, leading 4-2 on a Steven Johnson '23 make in transition off a Johnson feed. It was later 14-10 in favor of Swarthmore before the Garnet went on a 11-4 run to open an 11-point lead at 25-14.
 
Johnson swished a three-pointer on the fast break, cutting the Swarthmore lead down to just six points with 4:24 left in the first half but an 8-0 run in the final 1:57 before halftime suddenly gave the Garnet a 39-21 lead at the break.
 
Wesleyan made an 11-2 run in the second half, lowering the deficit to 13 with 11:21 remaining and later cut Swarthmore's lead down to 11 with 7:36 left but that was as close at the Cardinals would get for the remainder of play.
 
The Cardinals will spend the week preparing for the squad's home opener which is slated for Saturday, November 19 at 2:00 PM against Rowan. The contest will serve as the Herb Kenny Tribute Game, as the Cardinals honor the longtime former coach who passed away in the summer.