SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (December 4, 2024) – The Western New England men's basketball team was aided by four double-digit point scorers on Wednesday night as Jake Harrison would pick up his first double-double of the season while Tim Restall shined with 27 points to take down the Hawks of the University of Hartford on Wednesday night from the Anthony S. Caprio Alumni Healthful Living Center.

Records:

• Western New England: 6-3, 2-0 CNE
• University of Hartford: 2-5, 0-1 CNE

How it Happened:

The two teams would stay close in the first half as Western New England would get the early lead when Jake Harrison grabbed an offensive rebound and would tip home Western New England's first bucket of the game. Andrew Byfield would retaliate with a three-ball from Hartford on WNE's next possession of the game to give the Golden Bears a 5-3 lead. The Hawks would tie the game at five before the Golden Bears would go up by four after back-to-back buckets from Brian Geitner. Hartford would take a one-point lead with 7:48 to play after Kaosi Chijoke would get to the rim and get hit to pick up a foul shot, giving the Hawks a 20-19 lead. Tim Restall would have the next eight points in the game for Western New England, though Hartford would pick up buckets in between, as WNE and Hartford would be tied at 27 heading into the final five minutes of the first half. The Hawks would take their largest lead of the half, a five-point edge, with 4:10 to play after Troy Santos would drive to the rim and get two on a turnover by the Golden Bears. Western New England would respond, getting a three-ball from Will Laplante III, evening the score at 32. The final bucket of the first half came in favor of the Golden Bears when Jake Harrison found an opening under the rim, taking a 36-35 lead at the break. Western New England shot 44% from the field, though they were just 3/11 from distance. Hartford was 12/28 from the floor and 5/14 from deep in the opening half.

Hartford opened the second half on a quick 6-0 run in the first minute to take a five-point lead, 41-36. The Golden Bears quickly had a response, going to Tim Restall for the first four points of the half while Brian Geitner unloaded from distance, helping Western New England gain a two-point lead again, 43-41. The game would stay close with 14 minutes to play as both teams would exchange buckets while Nate Kasper would get on the board with a driving layup on an assist from Jake Harrison, giving WNE their one-point lead back, 50-49. Kasper's layup would drive WNE to a quick 8-0 run as Luka Vlajkovic would drop back-to-back layups to lead the charge. The Golden Bears would grow their lead to 13 with 9:01 to play when Geitner connected again from three-point land. Tim Restall and Jake Harrison would then combine for the next eight WNE points, four each, which gave the Golden Bears a 16-point lead, 71-55, as Western New England began to pull away from the Hawks. Geitner would hit one final triple with 1:12 to play, which would be Western New England's final bucket of the game, as WNE would go on to defeat the University of Hartford by a final score of 80-61.

Inside the Lines:

• Tim Restall led Western New England with 27 points overall on the night, picking up 12 field goals on 21 attempts while grabbing seven rebounds, three steals, and an assist.
• Jake Harrison had a double-double in the game, producing one of his best games of the season, picking up 11 points and 11 rebounds in the win while also coming away with eight assists, three blocks, and one steal.
• Brian Geitner rattled home four three balls while collecting 20 points overall on the night, shooting 8/16, grabbing three rebounds, and one block.
• Luka Vlajkovic was in double figures for the eighth time this season in nine games, grabbing ten points on 5/6 shooting.
• WNE shot 20/30, 66% from the field in the second half to lead their way to victory. Geitner dropped all three of WNE's triples in the half.
• Hartford was led by Troy Santos, who went for 14 points, four assists, three rebounds, and three steals in the game.
• Hartford had zero second-chance points in the second half.
• WNE dominated points in the paint in the second half, outscoring Hartford 34-12.

Up Next on the Schedule:

• WNE will play their first road game of the season after wrapping up a five-game road trip in which the Golden Bears would pick up a 4-1 record overall. The CNE road contest will come at Wentworth Institute on Saturday, December 7, at 2:00 PM.