HARTFORD, Conn. – Trailing by 15 points with 9:03 remaining, the seven-seed Wesleyan men's basketball team scored 13 unanswered to cut the deficit to just two points with 4:21 left, but Trinity had all the answers down the stretch and closed out a 74-67 NESCAC Quarterfinal win over the Cardinals on Saturday afternoon. Wesleyan finishes the season with a mark of 13-11 while the two-seed and No. 5 nationally ranked Bantams improve to 24-1 on the season.
 
In a contest that featured several extended runs, the Bantams came out swinging, scoring on four of their first five possessions to build a 9-0 lead just 2:14 into play. Wesleyan was held scoreless until Shane Regan '25 scored from deep in the paint after nearly five minutes had expired. That Regan basket, combined with stellar defensive play from the Cardinals, shifted momentum as Wesleyan rattled off a 13-2 run to tie the score. Regan and Nicky Johnson '25 combined for 11 of the 13 Cardinal points in that run.
 
Later in the first half, with Trinity leading 18-15 with 6:20 left on the clock, neither side led by more than three points through halftime as the two sides traded baskets on either end. Ben Lyttle '27 converted a three-point play to tie the score at 22-22 and Johnson scored five points in a span of 34 seconds to give Wesleyan a 27-24 lead. Trinity answered back with a Henry Vetter, but Jackson Cormier '26 finished off a feed from Johnson to give the Cardinals a 29-27 halftime advantage, all despite the NESCAC's leading scorer in Regan picking up three first half fouls.
 
Coming out of halftime, Trinity surged out in front, hitting the Cardinals with a 25-10 run in just 6:03 minutes of play to start the second half, taking a 52-39 lead. Ben Callahan-Gold couldn't miss for Trinity, burying three three-pointers in that 15-point swing for the Bantams. Trinity's lead ballooned to as many as 16 points at the midway point of the second half, but the Cardinals didn't go away quietly, answering back with 13 unanswered points to make it a game in the closing minutes.
 
Playing with three fouls, Regan came up big in the Cardinal run, converting a three-point play to make it 63-55 Bantams and later hitting a three-pointer in transition to cut the Trinity lead to 63-61 with 4:21 remaining.
 
Wesleyan continued to trail by two with under three minutes left, but the Cardinals were held scoreless for nearly three minutes until Johnson converted a layup in traffic with 51 seconds left. Leading by four, Trinity's Will Dorion was fouled and hit two clutch free throws to make it a six-point.
 
Free throws then proved costly as Regan was fouled on the ensuing possession, but missed the front end of a one-and-one opportunity. Trinity came down and hit 1-of-2 and after another empty Cardinal possession, Callahan-Gold iced the game with two more free throws as the Bantams held off Wesleyan in a 74-67 win.
 
That layup with under a minute remaining in regulation put Johnson over 1,000 career points, making him the 27^th Cardinal in team history to reach the milestone. He finished the game with 17 points (3-6 3FG), nine rebounds, and seven assists with no turnovers in 38 minutes.
 
Despite picking up three first half fouls, Regan still went on to score 23 points to lead the Cardinals, hitting 8-of-15 attempts from the floor and 3-of-6 from three-point land. He finishes the season averaging 19.4 points per game, tops in the NESCAC.
 
Trinity's starting lineup scored 72 of the Bantams' 74 points on the afternoon, with Callahan-Gold leading the way with a game-high 26 points (8-11 FG, 4-6 3FG) with eight rebounds and three blocks. Of his 26 points, 19 came in the second half. Vetter added 20 points, five rebounds, five assists, and two blocks in 37 minutes while Jarrel Okorougo tallied 14 points and seven rebounds.
 
Wesleyan figures to be heavily in the mix next season as the Cardinals return their top nine leading scorers from this season.