MIDDLETOWN, Conn. – Trailing by one at the half, the No. 20 nationally-ranked Wesleyan men's basketball team put together one of their most dominating halves of basketball all season, outscoring the Continentals 38-16 on their way to a 72-51 victory on Sunday afternoon from Silloway Gymnasium. Wesleyan (17-3, 5-1 NESCAC) picks up a much-needed bounce back win after Friday night's OT loss to Amherst while Hamilton (11-9, 3-3 NESCAC) losses for just the second time in seven games.
 
The engineer behind the Cardinals' massive second half performance was the play of Nicky Johnson '25 – who scored all 14 of his points in the second half alone while the first-year guard set career-highs in both assists (10) and steals (four) while adding six rebounds. With his 10 assists, Nicky Johnson becomes the first Cardinal to post double-digit assists since Kevin O'Brien posted 10 against Williams on January 5, 2018.
 
Rounding into form after missing three straight games is Sam Peek '22 as he finished with a game-high 16 points (7-14 FG) while adding seven rebounds and three assists in 33 minutes. Preston Maccoux '23 chipped in eight points, nine rebounds and three assists. Jordan James '22 tallied six points, eight rebounds (six offensive) and two blocks in just 17 minutes while Gabe Ravetz '23 came off the bench to score 10 points, his 16^th game with double-digit points on the season.
 
The two sides felt each out in the early going as Hamilton's halfcourt offense slowed down the Cardinals' transition game and kept the score below typical standards of a Wesleyan game. It was 8-8 towards the midway point in the first half before Peek started a mini 6-0 run with back-to-back jumpers before Antone Walker '22 hit a runner in the lane that made it 14-8 Cardinals.
 
Hamilton answered back with a 9-0 run of their own over the next 2:15 of play as the Continentals took a three-point advantage at 19-16. Just as the visitors seemed to gain some footing, in a game of runs, Wesleyan spouted out 13 unanswered points to suddenly take a double-digit lead at 29-19. Nicky Johnson keyed the run as he assists on three consecutive field goals to cap the 13-0 run, the last of which being a dish to Walker on the wing who hit from deep.
 
It was later 34-25 in favor of Wesleyan with 2:38 left in the half and despite the big margin, Hamilton roared back with a 10-0 run over the final minutes of the half to head into the locker room with a lead.
 
After seeing Hamilton close out the first half with such a fever, especially coming off a loss on Friday night, a response from Wesleyan was needed and they certainly answered the call. Hamilton's 35-point first half was bookended by a 16-point second half wherein the Continentals shot 7-for-30 (23.3 percent) from the floor, went to the free throw line just twice and missed all eight three-point attempts as the Cardinals put on a clinic over the final 20 minutes.
   
Wesleyan retook the lead in the first few minutes of the second half then put up a dominating 14-0 run over a 6+ minute span with Nicky Johnson being the catalyst, scoring seven straight points to ignite the run and then assisting on two straight buckets before hitting another jumper to cap the run with Wesleyan out in front 54-39.
 
Nicky Johnson continued to pour it on for Wesleyan in the late stages as he forced a Patrick Morgan turnover, stealing the ball near midcourt and going in uncontested for the layup. He followed that with a three-pointer on the next possession and then capped his night with assists on two straight trips down the floor to give him his first career double-double.
   
Hamilton was led by Nick Osarenren who tallied 13 points, eight rebounds and three steals in 36 minutes. He was the lone Continental in double figures.
 
Now 5-1 in league play, Wesleyan heads into a massive week as the Cardinals are set for trips to Middlebury (16-3, 6-1 NESCAC) on Friday night followed by Williams (14-1, 4-1 NESCAC) on Saturday afternoon.