Men's basketball coach Brian Meehan had a chance to earn his 300th win after a thrilling overtime win against Becker College Nov. 19. Three weeks later, and after four unsuccessful attempts, Meehan finally earned that elusive 300th victory last Sunday. The Judges pulled away from Babson College en route to a 61-53 win in the consolation game of the Big 4 Challenge at Salem State University. The men also fell to Clark University by a score of 74-55 earlier in the week.

Center Youri Dascy '14 did not attribute the team's recent struggles to the distraction of the 300th win, but he acknowledged their problems have stemmed from turnovers and lack of execution on offense.

"Honestly, some of us didn't even realize that he was going for his 300th win until yesterday," said Dascy. "We all are happy to be part of such a historical moment, and we are very proud of him."

Brandeis and Babson managed to keep the score close throughout the first half. Brandeis was down 25-22 at halftime, despite 13 points from guard Derek Retos '14. Yet, the Judges quickly jumped ahead to a 38-33 lead in the second half, the dagger coming from another Retos three-pointer.

The second half saw nine lead changes in all. The Beavers took a 43-42 lead with nine minutes remaining. However, just a few minutes later, Dascy put the Judges up for good with a three-point play. With two minutes remaining and Brandeis up 54-51, forward Vytas Kriskus '12 nailed a three-pointer to put the game out of reach.

Retos finished the game with 17 points and was named to the all-tournament team. Guard Ben Bartoldus '14 had 14 points on 9-10 shooting from the free throw line, while Dascy put up his second double-double in a row and fourth of the season, scoring 12 points to go along with his 11 rebounds. Yet, the team turned the ball over 16 times.

Dascy acknowledged this will be a big concern for the team as the season moves along.

"It all starts in practice," Dascy said. We practice how we play. All we have to do is practice hard and get rid of the mental breakdowns, and we should be fine. The talent is there; we just need some fine tuning."

In the first game of the Big 4 Challenge at Salem State, the Judges lost 65-57. Brandeis cut the lead to just three points with two minutes left, but Salem State hit five free throws to seal the game.

Brandeis started the game slowly, falling behind 19-10 early. However, hot shooting by Retos and a big game by Bartoldus kept the Judges within reach of the lead. The sophomore guards scored all 17 points in a 17-7 run that put Brandeis up for the first time with a score of 27-26. The Judges were only down 28-27 heading into halftime.

The Judges' comeback suffered a setback at the beginning of the second half, as Salem State bolted ahead to a 46-36 lead just six minutes into the half. Brandeis made another run, however, as Bartoldus led the way once again. His runner brought the Judges to within three with two minutes remaining, but Salem State's free throws clinched the semifinal match for the Vikings.

Bartoldus finished with a season-high 17 points. Retos put up another 16, including four more three-pointers. Dascy scored 14 points and grabbed 13 rebounds for his third double-double of the season.

"The competition was good," said Bartoldus about the game. "The four teams in the tournament are always strong and typically have productive seasons. They are tough teams. Games like this past weekend will really prepare us for in conference games."

Earlier in the week, Brandeis traveled to Clark University in a matchup with Meehan's alma mater. The Judges found themselves down 26-16 early. They strung together a late run in the first half to pull within nine, but went into halftime down 45-33.

After a quick run by Clark to start the second half, Brandeis cut the lead to 50-38 on a three-point play by forward Alex Schmidt '14. However, this was the closest Brandeis would get to the lead for the rest of the game, as the Cougars dominated Brandeis' defense. The lead ballooned to 20 and after that, Clark didn't look back.

Retos scored another 17 points, including four three-pointers. Dascy put up 10 points, four rebounds and two blocks, while forward Ishmael Kalilou '15 scored 11 points in his first career start.

The Judges will travel to Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts for their next game tomorrow at 7:30 p.m. The team will then take on Amherst College at home on Saturday, before a three-week hiatus.