The men’s basketball team split its University Athletic Association home stand this past weekend. On Sunday afternoon, the team defeated the University of Chicago 70-66, and on Friday it fell to Washington University in St. Louis 87-75.


Judges 70, Chicago 66

On Sunday, the Judges came through victorious in a close game by a mere four points. The victory was due to an impressive individual performance by guard Corey Sherman ’19.  Sherman dominated on the day with 24 points for the squad. He shot an efficient 10-17 from the field, including 4-6 from behind the three-point arc. For Sherman, the 24 points was his most in a game this season, which is his first for the Judges. 

For the contest as a whole, both teams performed similarly, each shooting 44.8 percent from the field. Three-point and free throw shooting was the distinct difference for the Judges. The squad outshot the Maroons 42.9 percent to 30 percent from behind the arc, and 90 percent to 55.6 percent from the charity stripe. It was able to escape with the victory even though it was outrebounded by Chicago, 35-29. 

Judges 75, WashU 87

On Friday night the squad fell in a conference clash against WashU. A poor defensive effort by the team allowed the Bears to score at will. WashU converted on over half of its attempts from the field, along with a selfless style of play that led to 24 assists on the evening. 

The Judges would not be deterred on their own offensive end, though, setting a season high in three-pointers with 13. The high-octane perimeter shooting allowed the squad to come back from a 16-point deficit as the game tightened up in the second half. Forward Eric D’Aguanno ’20 was the key to the shooting success. 

D’Aguanno hit upon three three-pointers as the first half came to an end with the Judges battling back in the contest. The second half started off well for the squad as it jumped out to a quick 10-2 run, cutting the deficit to only two points. Sherman was the reason as he scored on a three with 17 minutes left in the game. Sherman had 11 points for the game as a whole. 

The game came undone when WashU went on a dominant 14-2 streak late in the second half. The lead would go all the way to 19 at one point, as the Judges had no answer for the Bears’ hot shooting and slick passing. 

The 13 three-pointers were the most for Brandeis since the team’s home matchup with WashU a year ago, in which they recorded 17 threes. Overall, the team shot over 61 percent from behind the arc on Friday night. 

For the Judges, Sherman and four other players scored in the double digits, on what was an impressive offensive performance. Guard Collin Sawyer ’20 and D’Aguanno were both lethal on the day, each recording 14 points off of four three-pointers. They alternated strong halves, as D’Aguanno had nine points in the first and Sawyer recorded 11 in the second. 

Forward Chandler Jones ’21 also led the charge in the second half, scoring 11 of his 13 points in the period. Jones was able to score in bunches as he played a career-high 38 minutes. Coming off the bench, guard Nate Meehan ’18 scored 10 points on the backs of three three-pointers. With his solid perimeter shooting on the day, Meehan recorded his 118th three-pointer, which put him in the top-10 all-time in program history. 

On the glass, Jones and center Akim Sanni ’21 each had six rebounds for the game. Overall the team was outrebounded by WashU 31-30. WashU also passed the ball better than the Judges, committing only nine turnovers, as opposed to Brandeis’ 16. Guard Lawrence Sabir ’21 led the squad with six assists. 

Next up for the Judges is a weekend road trip this coming week. On Friday, they will travel to square off against the University of Rochester, and on Sunday they will be on the road at Emory University. The team will finish off its season on Feb. 24 at home against New York University.