Box Score HENRIETTA, N.Y.—The No. 23 Hobart College men's basketball team scored the final six points of the game to beat Nazareth College 77-71 in the consolation semifinals of the 48th annual Wendy's College Classic in RIT's Clark Gymnasium. Senior guard Joe Gibbons recorded a game-high 24 points for the Statesmen.

Gibbons was 11-of-15 from the floor and made both of his free throw attempts. He also grabbed six boards and handed out five assists. Hobart (4-1) also got double-doubles from senior forward Richie Bonney and junior guard Trey Blanding. Bonney scored 21 points on 9-of-15 shooting and pulled down a game-high 11 rebounds. Blanding added 12 points and a career-high 10 assists. Junior guard Andrew Hoy gave the Statesmen four players in double digits with a career-high 12 points, including three 3-pointers.

Hobart shot 55.4 percent from the floor, including 69.6 percent in the second half, and made 11-of-14 from the free throw line.

The Golden Flyers (3-2) also put four players in double digits, led by Brad Ford's 21 points and game-high matching 11 rebounds. Maurice Mills, Scott Hayford, and Mitch Ford contributed 17, 16, and 10 points, respectively.

Nazareth shot 45.5 percent from the floor, including 57.6 percent in the second half, and went 8-of-13 at the line.

In a back-and-forth first half, Hobart built its largest lead of the stanza with an 11-2 run over the final three and a half minutes. Mills' layup with 3:31 to go put the Golden Flyers up 24-23. Bonney countered with the game's next five points points, including an old fashion 3-point play. Gibbons followed with back-to-back buckets, putting the Statesmen up 32-24 with 1:37 remaining. Brad Ford interrupted the streak with a layup, but Gibbons answered with the final points of the half, giving Hobart a 34-26 advantage at the break.

The Statesmen led by as many as 12 early in the second half, but the Golden Flyers used an 18-5 run to reclaim the lead, 58-57, by the 7:18 mark. Neither team led by more than 3 points over the next six minutes, swapping the lead five times. Tied at 71, Gibbons put Hobart in the lead for good on a jumper set up by Blanding. Nazareth put up a 3 at the other end of the court that was off the mark. Hoy secured the rebound and 10 seconds later Blanding earned a trip to the charity stripe. He made both for a 4-point Hobart lead. 

The Golden Flyers got two more looks from beyond the arc, but missed both. Bonney grabbed the board on the second, forcing Naz to foul. Bonney made both free throws to close out the scoring.

Hobart will play in the Wendy's Classic fifth place game at 3 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 7 in St. John Fisher's Manning and Napier Gym. The Statesmen will face the winner of tonight's Geneseo vs. RIT game.