#24 Tartans Drop UAA Opener at Case Western Reserve

(CLEVELAND, Ohio) – The Carnegie Mellon University men's basketball team, ranked 24th nationally, traveled to Cleveland, Ohio to open University Athletic Association (UAA) play at Case Western Reserve University Saturday afternoon. The Tartans dropped an 85-67 contest to the Spartans and are now 9-3 overall and 1-0 in UAA play. Case Western Reserve is 5-7, 1-0.

Game Information
Carnegie Mellon 67, Case Western Reserve 89
Records: Carnegie Mellon (9-3, 0-1), Case Western Reserve (5-7, 1-0)
Location: Cleveland, Ohio (Horsburgh Gymnasium)

How it Happened

• After the Spartans started off the scoring, junior Justin Allen knotted the score at 3-all three minutes into the game following a foul shot and then a transition layup off a pass from sophomore Isaac Higgs.
• Seven minutes into the game, Case Western Reserve took a 19-9 lead following a triple by Anand Dharmarajan.
• Three minutes later the home team lead grew to 24-12, but the Tartans cut the deficit to 28-24 with 5:37 on the clock after five straight point by junior Buckley DeJardin.
• The Spartans answered scoring seven straight to push their lead back to double digits at 35-24.
• Carnegie Mellon closed the final 2:32 of the first half on a 7-2 run which ended with a triple by freshman Alex Hassanein at the buzzer and trailed 39-33 at the break.
• Over the first two minutes of the second half, Case Western Reserve used a 9-2 run to once again grab a double-digit lead at 48-35.
• The Spartans lead grew to 57-40 as the clock showed 14:39 remaining in the contest.
• Case Western Reserve maintained control the rest of the game and led by as many as 27 points before the Tartans ended the game on a 9-4 run for a final score of 89-67.

Tartan Stats

• The Tartans shot 49.1% (26-53) from the floor and converted 6-of-14 from behind the arc for 42.9%.
• Allen led the Tartans in scoring with 19 points. He converted 8-of-17 from the floor and 2-of-3 from behind the arc.
• DeJardin along with graduate student R.J. Holmes each finished with 12 points.
• Holmes grabbed a team-high seven rebounds and recorded two blocks.

Spartan Stats

• The Spartans shot 47.4% (12-35) from the floor and converted 12-of-35 from behind the arc for 34.3%.
• Sam Trunley led the Spartans with a game-high 28 points and six assists.
• Matthew Ellis scored 15 points off the bench while Umar Rashid and Andy Barba each scored 13 points.
• Rashid led all players with 13 rebounds.

Up Next

Carnegie Mellon will travel to the Windy City to play the University of Chicago on Friday, January 17. Tip is set for 5:30 p.m. CT.