MIDDLETOWN, Conn. – The Wesleyan men's basketball leaned on some heroic efforts from their backcourt duo on Saturday afternoon as Gabe Ravetz '23 and Nicky Johnson '25 combined for 60 points in the Cardinals' 83-76 victory over Bates from Silloway Gymnasium on Saturday afternoon. Wesleyan (16-8, 7-3 NESCAC) has clinched a top four seed and will host a NESCAC Quarterfinal game on Saturday while Bates (7-17, 1-9 NESCAC) finishes the season on an eight-game losing streak.
 
Less than 24 hours removed from breaking the program record for most made three-pointers, Ravetz made it a weekend to remember as he scored a career-high 33 points on the same day where he became the 26^th Cardinal in program history to score 1,000 career points. Needing just two points to reach the 1,000-point milestone, Ravetz took all of 38 seconds to hit that mark as he nailed a stepback jumper to clinch his personal milestone. That initial make was a sign of things to come as the senior was red hot all afternoon, going 13-for-20 from the floor and 5-of-9 from three as he recorded his first career 30-point game. He also became the first Cardinal in program history to hit at least 200 career three-pointers.
 
Backing up the stellar Ravetz performance was Johnson who was everywhere, exploding for 27 points including 17 in the second half. Johnson went 6-for-10 from the floor and went to the charity stripe 16 times, hitting a career-high 14 from the line. The sophomore point guard matched his career-high with 12 rebounds, good enough for a double-double, while his point total is just one off his career-high.
 
The Bobcats certainly came to play, impressive considering Bates had lost seven straight coming in, having already been locked into last place in the NESCAC standings. Neither side could miss in the early stages, as the scoreboard read 27-27 just 9:42 into play. The frenetic pace in the first half saw eight lead changes and five ties, with the Cardinals opening a 7-0 lead before Bates came roaring back to take a 25-17 lead just over seven minutes in.
 
Just as Bates had gone up by five with 4:46 left in the half, the Cardinals finished the half on a 7-1 run highlighted by a putback from Steven Johnson '23 to take a 41-40 lead into the halftime break. Ravetz (18) and Johnson (10) combined to score 28 of the Cardinals' 41 points in the first half. Bates went 7-for-12 from three-point territory to keep pace with the Wesleyan duo.
 
The second half mirrored the first in that neither side led by more than seven points and there was six more lead changes as well as four ties. Bates led for a majority of the half (11:46 total minutes) but the game was decided in the final four minutes.
 
Jahmir Primer had just hit a big three-pointer with 4:01 left that made it 71-67 in favor of Bates, but the Bobcats saw Wesleyan score on their next two possessions to tie the score at 71 apiece. After turnovers form both sides, it was Johnson who drove the lane, initiating contact which he shook off to bury a layup plus the foul.
 
With under a minute to play and Wesleyan leading 75-74, it was Johnson again who shouldered some contact on a drive and convert a crucial three-point play that pushed the Cardinals back out in front by four points.
 
The Bobcats needed to foul late and Johnson came up with several clutch makes from the free throw line to ice the game away, securing a 83-76 victory for Wesleyan.
 
Bates was held to just four free throw attempts for the entire game, while Wesleyan shot 31 free throws as a team. Wesleyan also held Bates to just six offensive rebounds, winning the rebounding battle 39-31.
 
The Cardinals are set to make their 15^th all-time appearance in the NESCAC Tournament and are looking to defend their 2022 title, which came in an epic 78-75 overtime win over Williams.