The Judges split their conference games this week, going 1-1 in the process. On Sunday the team defeated Carnegie Mellon University in a close victory, while two days before on Friday night it fell in a blowout to Case Western Reserve University.

Judges 87, Carnegie Mellon 79

The Judges got their first conference win of the season on Sunday afternoon, holding off Carnegie Mellon to claim their overall fifth win of the season. Forward Chandler Jones ’21 led the team on the day, recording an impressive 18 points in the process. It was also a double-double for the rookie, as he added 10 rebounds to go along with his point totals. 

Forward Latye Workman ’18 was almost as impressive, scoring 17 points to lead the charge for the team’s big men, along with Jones. Workman had an all-around remarkable game, recording six rebounds, two assists, two steals and two blocks. For the guards, shooting guard Colin Sawyer ’20 was the leader on the day, scoring 14 points off of 6-8 shooting, including two three-pointers. 

Guard Lawrence Sabir ’21 was also big on the day, coming just short of a double-double, with eight points and 10 rebounds. Sabir also added six assists and two steals for the squad. The bench also stood tall for the Judges on the day, led by guard Corey Sherman ’19. Sherman led the scoring for the reserves, recording 14 points and five assists. His totals were helped by his eight free throws. 

Also off the bench was co-captain, forward Eric D’Aguanno ’20, who contributed 14 points off the backs of a 4-10 shooting performance from behind the three-point arc. As a whole, the squad shot over 36 percent from three on the game. D’Aguanno also led the bench in minutes played with 26. 

For Carnegie Mellon, the loss dropped them to 4-14 on a season that is quickly coming to a close. The defeat also put them behind the Judges for last place in the conference standings.

Case Western 89, Judges 58

The Judges got promptly romped by the visiting Spartans, who improved their record to 3-3 in the University Athletic Association conference. Three-point shooting was the key in the victory for Case Western, as it converted on a season-high 18 threes during the contest. 

Brandeis was put into a tough hole from the get go, as Case Western ran out to a quick 13-4 lead. Guard Semih Say ’21 battled for the Judges, as his bucket in the first half put the team within six points temporarily, one of the only times in the game that the score was even that close.

Case Western dominated the rest of the first half as it took a 12-4 run at the end of the half to take a 15 point lead into the halftime break. The beginning of the second half was more of the same as the Spartans played brilliantly through a 11-3 run to give them a 53-30 lead. 

The Judges were stopped from climbing back into the game at all, even trailing by as much as 32 points at one juncture of the game. The 31-point loss was the worst on the year for the Brandeis squad. 

Even in crushing defeat, the Judges were able to have three players pup up double-digit points. Sabir recorded 13 points for the team off of 4-9 shooting from the field, as well as five free throws. In addition, he added four rebounds and four steals to stuff the stat sheet. 

Off the bench, Sherman added 12 points, while Say finished with 11 points. On the glass, Workman was the leader of the squad, corralling nine total rebounds. Center Akim Sanni ’21, Sabir and Sherman each recorded two assists for the team. 

Next up for the Judges is a road trip for a rematch against this week’s opponents. On Friday, the team will at the home of Case Western in an attempt to avenge a brutal loss. After that, the Judges will travel to Carnegie Mellon on Sunday with hope of another victory. The team is about to enter the final month of regular season play before the playoffs begin so every game matters.