Newburgh, NY - The Vassar College Men's Basketball team saw three players scored double-digit points to lead a balanced scoring attack as the Brewers defeated New Paltz, 77-56, in the opening night of the Hudson Valley Classic at Mount Saint Mary. Vassar's record improves to 3-0 on the season while the Hawks drop to 1-3 overall.

First Half

• Vassar opened the game with a 11-1 advantage following triples from juniors Shea Fitzgerald, Sebastian Medina and Avery Lee along with a bucket from senior Nathan Denham in the first four minutes of action.
• Following a layup from Trevor Amalfitano at the 14:57 mark, VC expanded its lead to 18-3 on two lay-ins from Denham and a three-pointer from senior Sacha Greenberg to force the second New Paltz timeout of the first half with just over 12 minutes to go in the first half.
• Junior Kreekor Karageuzian's layup put the Brewers ahead 24-5 at the 10:25 mark before makes from the Hawks' Isaiah Rivera and Justin Noelizaire reduced the lead to 24-9 with just under 10 minutes to play in the opening stanza.
• Five points from Lee, a floater from Denham and a triple from Fitzgerald expanded the Brewers advantage to a first half high 25 points with 5:56 left in the half.
• The Hawks got within 38-19 on a lay-in from Amir Hughes and a three from Amalfitano until VC closed the half with jumpers from Denham and Greenberg to take a 42-19 lead into the halftime break.
• Vassar closed the opening half shooting an even 50-percent from the field, including 5-for-12 from beyond the three-point line.
• New Paltz finished the first 20 minutes shooting 26.7-percent overall while being limited to 2-for-15 from three-point distance.

Second Half

• The Hawks began the second half on a 12-6 run to get within 48-31 on a three-pointer from Thomas Keane with 15:12 remaining.
• Both teams went scoreless for a three-minute stretch as sophomore Parker Neuenhaus' bucket snapped the drought to put Vassar ahead 52-33 at the 10:53 mark.
• Five straight points from Hughes reduced the deficit to 52-38 before a three-pointer from Fitzgerald and an old-fashioned three-point play from Lee expanded the Vassar lead back to 20 points with 7:30 left in regulation.
• Mo Sylla's three-pointer cut the Vassar lead to 68-50 with 4:01 left in the second half but four free throws from Fitzgerald and a lay-in from junior Eric Zhang increased the lead to 74-52 at the 1:41 mark.
• Peter Nydam's bucket with 32 seconds left got the Hawks back within 19 until two free throws from junior Noah Mann gave Vassar the final 21 point victory.
• Vassar cooled to 33.3-percent overall from the field in the second half while converting on just 1-for-9 from three but went 12-for-13 from the free throw stripe.
• New Paltz closed the second half shooting 36.8-percent overall including 6-for-15 from three.

For The Brewers

• Denham cashed his second double-double of the season with 16 points (7-for-11 FG) and 13 rebounds while Fitzgerald tallied a game-high 19 points, eight rebounds and six assists.
• Lee recorded 16 points, four rebounds and two assists along with Neuenhaus registering eight points, seven boards and four assists.
• Greenberg chipped in seven points and seven rebounds off the bench while Medina posted three points, six boards and two steals.

For The Hawks

• Rivera garnered a team-high 18 points and 10 rebounds for a double-double while Sylla posted 14 points, four rebounds and three assists.
• Amalfitano recorded six points and two assists along with Keane chipping in five points and two assists.
• Hughes finished with nine points and two assists off the bench for the Hawks.

Game Statistics

• Vassar closed the night shooting 42-percent from the field while going 6-for-21 from three and 13-for-14 from the free throw line.
• New Paltz ended the evening shooting 32.4-percent overall, including 8-for-30 from beyond the three-point stripe, and 4-for-7 from the free throw line.
• Vassar held a 17-14 edge in points off turnovers along with a 10-3 advantage in second chance points.
• The Brewers also outscored New Paltz 36-26 in the paint and 8-7 in fast break points.

Up Next

• Both teams will return to the court tomorrow afternoon for the second day of the Hudson Valley Classic at SUNY New Paltz as the Brewers will face off with Mount Saint Mary at 4:00 p.m. followed by New Paltz taking on Bard at 6:00 p.m.