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POUGHKEEPSIE, N.Y. – After falling behind by six points, the Vassar College men's basketball team went on a 29-5 run to take a 36-18 halftime lead against RIT on Saturday afternoon.  The Brewers (6-8, 2-5 Liberty) cruised from there, knocking off the Tigers (3-11, 0-7 Liberty) 70-55 at the Athletic & Fitness Center to snap their three-game losing streak.
 
The game was knotted at 7-7 before RIT scored six straight points to open up its early 13-7 advantage.  However, an Alex Seff (Arlington, VA) layup started an 11-0 spurt that put Vassar in front 18-13 with 9:16 left in the first half.  After a jumper by the Tigers' Chuck Okehie, back-to-back Zach Bromfeld (Woodmere, NY) layups started 8-0 rally that extended the margin to 26-15.  An emphatic Lance Tebay (Virginia Beach, VA) dunk then sparked another eight-point spurt to end the half, as the Brewers held a 36-18 advantage at intermission.
 
RIT scored eight of the first 10 points in the second half to pull within 12, but the Brewers quickly responded with a Paul Grinde (Virginia Beach, VA) layup and a Chris Gallivan (East Walpole, MA) trey.  After the Tigers again trimmed the margin to 12 when Matt Anderson's trey made it 54-42 midway through the second half, Grinde converted the and-one free throw after a layup to bring the lead back to 15 points, 57-42.  Grinde's layup at the 1:39 mark capped a 15-8 rally that gave Vassar its largest cushion of the game, 69-59.  The final margin was 15 points, 70-55, as the Brewers earned their first home win since the season opener on Nov. 16.
 
"It was a true team effort," Head Coach Ryan Mee said.  "Getting the guys to see success when they let it out and just play, they have fun doing it.  And it's always nice to see results."
 
Grinde paced the Brewers with 21 points and seven rebounds, and Seff finished with 14 points to go along with three steals.  Tebay, meanwhile, notched nine points, seven boards and four assists in his first start of the season.  Bromfeld added eight points and six rebounds off the bench, as Vassar held a 48-39 edge on the glass.  The Brewers shot 41.7 percent (25-of-60) from the floor, 25 percent (6-of-24) from three-point land, and 66.7 percent (14-of-21) at the free throw line.
 
Marcell Davis led RIT with 10 points and nine rebounds.  Will Atkinson also grabbed nine boards to go along with eight points.  Chase Lewis also had eight points, while Jaymee Rosser handed out four assists.  The Tigers went 20-for-60 (33.3 percent) from the field, 8-for-29 (27.6 percent) from long range, and 7-for-15 (46.7 percent) at the charity stripe.
 
On Tuesday night, Vassar continues its homestand with a 7 p.m. matchup against first-place Skidmore (8-5, 6-1 Liberty).  It will be the second meeting of the season between the squads.  The Thoroughbreds notched a 94-54 victory over the Brewers on Dec. 12.