The men’s basketball team had a solid weekend, ending their four-game skid and taking revenge on one of their conference opponents. 

Judges 51, Rochester 78

With the Judges coming off a high after a win over Emory University, the team was unable to keep their momentum going in a tough loss to the University of Rochester. 

With only 19 points in the first half, the Judges were defeated before the second half even began. Rochester was up by 27 points and held that lead throughout the second half of play. The Judges rallied and were able to keep up the pace, tying Rochester’s 32 second-half points, but were unable to reduce their enormous deficit. 

Forward and lead-scorer Jordan Cooper ’18, poured in 19 points to lead the team for the second game in a row. Despite his performance, Cooper fell just short of his eighth 20-point game this season. Cooper was the only member of the club to hit double digits, a telling statistic for the struggling Judges.

The Judges’ lack of offense proved to be the difference in a game defined by shooting. The team shot 33 percent from the field, while Rochester pocketed baskets at a rate near 50 percent. 

Rochester dominated the rest of the stat box, hitting 11 3-pointers on 42 percent shooting, while the Judges connected on a mere 18 percent of their shots beyond the three-point arc. 

Rochester also outmatched the Judges down low, boxing out for 40 rebounds against the Judges’ 28. 

Last month, the Judges lost to Rochester 67-56 as they dropped their fourth game in a row.  

Judges 67, Emory 59

The Judges started off the weekend at home on Friday against Emory. The Judges had recently lost to the Emory Eagles in a 94-85 overtime thriller but were able to brush past their opponents in a tight rematch.

The Judges got out to an early start with a 12-4 lead early in the game. Led by guard Tim Reale ’17, the team was able to stretch their lead to 10 during the half and go into the final half up by five. 

Reale contributed eight points and four rebounds during the first half to propel the Judges to their 27-22 lead. Reale shot .400 in the first half, excluding his 4-6 free throws from the line. 

In the second half, Reale gave up the reins to Cooper, who had an unreal half, pouring in 21 points and three rebounds. Cooper finished the game with a total of seven rebounds and 28 points. Reale and Cooper combined for more than half of the Judges’ points, with Reale contributing another four in the second half. 

Cooper managed to take revenge for his previous performance against Emory. Cooper posted a mere four points in eight minutes of play against Emory last week after fouling out of the game. This week’s matchup marked Cooper’s seventh 20-point game this season, a feat that has helped him lead the team in points this season. 

Despite the Judges’ astounding second-half numbers, the team shot a measly 35 percent from the field.The stat was a long fall from their previous matchup against Emory, in which the team shot nearly 50 percent. The Judges made up for it in their 3-point shooting, connecting at a rate of  42.9 percent on their treys. 

The win marks the 205th victory for coach Brian Meehan, an accomplishment which places him first overall for wins in program history. Meehan passes Bob Brannum to mark his record of 205-153 in his 14 incredible years with the University. 

The Judges stand at 7-12 on the season and in sixth place in the conference. With the rest of the season against fellow conference opponents, the Judges will need to win three of their last five to buoy their hopes for a .500 conference record and will need all five members of their starting core to iron out their overall record. 

The Judges’ season will continue against Carnegie Mellon University this coming Friday and Case Western Reserve University on Sunday.