SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (November 23, 2024) – The Western New England men's basketball team came away with a victory in their own Hampton Inn Holiday Classic tournament on Saturday afternoon, defeating the Roadrunners of Ramapo College by a final score of 63-58.
Brian Geitner led the way for the Golden Bears with 24 points, being named tournament MVP, while
Jake Harrison would be named to the all-tournament team for the third straight season.
Records:
- Western New England: 4-2
- Ramapo College: 3-1
How it Happened:
The Golden Bears would get off to a quick 6-0 start four minutes into the game as the opening half was short of scoring.
Tim Restall started off WNE with their first four points of the game while
Brian Geitner came away with the next, forcing a timeout by Ramapo early in the game. The Roadrunners wouldn't' sink their first field goal until the 13:12 mark of the first half when Peter Gorman was on the board, getting all of Ramapo's first four points of the game, getting WNE's lead down to 9-6.
Jake Harrison and
Nate Kasper would quickly respond for WNE with a pair of free throws and a driving layup that brought the Golden Bears lead up to 13-6.
Cody Palazzesi would knock down a triple for WNE that saw the lead hit double figures for the first time in the game with 6:31, seeing the Golden Bears take a 20-10 lead. Ramapo would fight to get WNE's lead down though would not be able to as
Luka Vlajkovic would sink a layup while Geitner hit from three that saw WNE take a 28-16 lead, a 12-point advantage, with one minute to go in the half. Geitner hit a pair of free throws while Ramapo would be stuffed in the opening half, hitting just five field goals, one three-ball, and five free throws in the game to trail 30-16 after one half of play. WNE was a meager 11/29 from the field, hitting on just three of their 14 three-point shots in the half.
Ramapo would find their game to open the second half, scoring three quick hoops to get WNE's lead quickly down to eight just two minutes into the half. The Golden Bears would take exception, calling a timeout, and would respond with eight points from
Brian Geitner, two triples, and a layup to give Western New England their largest lead of the game, 38-22. Ramapo would battle back, however, shooting at a much more productive clip in the second half than the first. The Roadrunners would go on an 11-0 run at the midway point of the second half that saw WNE's lead shrink down to just six, 4-135, as Tim Linton would begin to catch fire for Ramapo. Western New England would continue to look
Geitner'sway to find the spark, and the graduate student would answer after Ramapo got the game back within one with 6:39 to go. The Tolland, Connecticut native would splash a three on an assist from
Cody Palazzesi to give WNE a 48-44 lead with 6:10 to play. Ramapo again got the game to one, though the response from
Geitner again would be three more points for the Golden Bears. A mini 8-2 run for WNE would see their one-point lead grow to a seven-point lead after
Luka Vlajkovic would also connect from three with 2:43 to play, giving WNE a 56-49 lead. The junior would score WNE's last field goal of the game, as it was enough to get by the Roadunners of Ramapo College in the end, as WNE would win the Hampton Inn Holiday Classic by a final score of 63-58.
Brian Geitner would be named MVP of the tournament, while
Jake Harrison was named to the all-tournament team after his combined 13 assists in the two games.
Inside the Lines:
- The Golden Bears saw Brian Geitner come away with 24 points in the win, including 5/12 from deep to give WNE the win. Geinter also had a rebound and a steal.
- Luka Vlajkovic would pick up 11 points, two rebounds, an assist, and a steal in the game.
- Tim Restall had a quiet ten points and 12 rebounds in the game, going for another double-double on the season.
- WNE shot 40.7% from the field as a team and 9/29 (31%) from three.
- Ramapo shot a poor 20% in the first half as a team though picked it up in the second half by dropping 16/25 field goals for a 64% shooting percentage.
Up Next on the Schedule:
- The tournament champion Golden Bears will remain at home as their schedule brings Trinity College (Conn.) on Tuesday, November 26 at 6:00 PM.
