Men’s Basketball Wins Second Straight Defeating Haverford 73-59

Nov. 24 – (PITTSBURGH, Pa.) – The Carnegie Mellon University men's basketball team hosted the first day of their annual Thanksgiving tournament, the Radisson/Carnegie Mellon Tournament, Saturday, November 24 at Skibo Gymnasium. The Tartans faced the Fords of Haverford College and came away with a 73-59 victory. The Tartans move to 2-1 following the win, as the Fords drop to 1-3.

Carnegie Mellon took an 8-7 lead when junior Terrance Bouldin-Johnson (Tukwila, Wash./O’Dea) hit two foul shots 3:12 into the contest and never trailed the rest of the way. The Fords kept it close three quarters of the first half, but the Cardinal and Gray offense was too strong. The Tartans ended the first half on a 13-7 run to take a 40-33 lead into the locker room.

The Tartans started the second half where they left off. Carnegie Mellon opened with a 13-5 run to take a 53-38 lead with 12:47 to play in regulation. Haverford cut Carnegie Mellon’s lead to ten (57-47) going on a 9-4 run over the next 4:05, but that is as close as they would get. The Tartans built the largest lead of the game, 70-48, with five minutes remaining and cruised to the 73-59 victory.

Four Tartans scored in double figures. Senior Greg Gonzalez (Southlake, Texas/Carroll) led the Tartans recording his second straight double-double cashing in with 14 points and 10 rebounds. Junior Ryan Einwag (Pittsburgh, Pa./Baldwin) had a team-high 15 points, as senior Geoff Kozak (Huntingdon, Pa./Huntingdon) and sophomore Jack Anderson (Beaver Falls, Pa.) tallied 12 apiece. Kozak dished out eight assists and Anderson recorded a career-high six steals.

The Cardinal and Gray turned 19 Fords turnovers into 28 points, while dominating the inside game scoring 32 points to Haverford’s 16 from the paint.

Chaz Thomas led the charge for the Fords cashing in with a game-high 29 points shooting 10-of-13 from the floor including 4-of-4 from behind the arc. Carnegie Mellon shot 47.5% from the floor, 56.0% in the first half, as Haverford finished the game shooting 43.2%. The Tartans help the edge on the glass for the second time this season hauling in 38 boards to the Crusaders 27.

Ohio Northern defeated Susquehanna 70-59 in the other first round game. The Tartans will now face the Polar Bears at 3:00 p.m. Sunday in the championship game. The Fords will face the Crusaders in the consolation game at 1:00 p.m.