GENEVA, N.Y.—Hobart cruised to a 77-61 victory over Keuka in the opening game of the 2024 Hobart Basketball Tournament. Senior
Aidan Rodgers and sophomore
Alex Moesch led the Statesmen with 14 points apiece.
Rodgers had a perfect shooting night, making all five of his shots from the floor, including a pair of 3-pointers. He also sank both of his free throws. Moesch went 4-of-5 from 3-point range and shot 5-of-8 overall. They were joined in double figures by junior
Niko Lutz, who posted a career-high 11 points knocking down 3-of-5 from beyond the arc. Senior
Carter Meshanic did a little bit of everything for Hobart, finishing with six points, five rebounds and a game-high seven assists. The Statesmen led by as many as 28 in the game and played all 15 available players.
Keuka got a game-high 16 points from Will Tehan, who made three triples. Akinlana Popoola and Marcus Reed added 14 and 10 points, respectively.
FOR THE RECORD
- Hobart evened its record to 2-2 overall.
- Keuka slipped to 2-2.
KEY STATS
- Hobart made 13 3-pointers, the most by the Statesmen in a game since sinking 13 against RIT on Jan. 29, 2022.
- Hobart shot 50.8% from the floor for the game, including 62.1% in the second half.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- The Statesmen never trailed in the game and the score was only tied twice, at 2 and 4.
- Moesch broke the deadlock at 4-all with back-to-back treys.
- Hobart never trailed from that point on, taking a 31-24 lead into halftime.
- Moesch led all scorers with eight points in the first half.
- The Statesmen opened the second half on a 9-2 run. Senior Hunter Meshanic (8 pts, 6 rebs) capped the surge with a 3-pointer that forced the Wolves to burn a timeout.
- An 8-0 run later in the frame extended the home team's lead to 77-49 with four and a half minutes remaining.
CHAMPIONSHIP SATURDAY
- Hobart will await the winner of the tournament's second game, Buffalo State vs. Penn State Behrend. Saturday's championship game is scheduled to tip off at 5:15 p.m.
- Keuka will square off against the loser of the second semifinal in the consolation game at 3 p.m.
