BRUNSWICK, Me. – The No. 1 Wesleyan men's basketball team used a 17-2 first half run to establish a double-digit lead before holding off a Bowdoin squad that cut the deficit down to five early in the second half, ultimately pulling out an 84-73 win on Friday night in Morrell Gymnasium. The Cardinals (23-0, 9-0 NESCAC) improve to 14-0 in games played away from home this season while the Polar Bears (11-12, 1-8 NESCAC) out of postseason contention.
After a back-and-forth start to the game, Wesleyan jumped all over Bowdoin with a 17-2 run that made it 27-13 Cardinals with 8:37 left in the first half. The highest scorer for Wesleyan in that run had four points as the Cardinals leaned on a balanced attack throughout.
Wesleyan's run of 11 unanswered points came to an end, but the lead swelled to 16 points before the end of the half.
Fritz Hauser '26 had two three's in the first half while
Jackson Cormier '26 led the team with 11 first half points as the junior guard went 5-of-7 from the floor with six rebounds and two steals. The trademark Wesleyan defense proved a lot for Bowdoin to handle as the Polar Bears scored just 21 first half points on 32.1 percent shooting, going 1-for-11 (9.1 percent) from three, and turning the ball over nine times.
Despite trailing by 16 at the half, Bowdoin went on the offensive coming out of halftime, scoring eight unanswered to cut the deficit down to single digits. Cormier hit a three to stymie the Bowdoin run but the Polar Bears kept hitting from long range, cutting Wesleyan's lead down to 47-42 with 14:21 remaining.
In response to the Bowdoin run, Wesleyan regained control with an 8-1 run of their own, getting a three-point play from
Josh Cameron '27 before
Sam Pohlman '26 canned a triple to restore a double-digit advantage.
Three minutes later, Wesleyan led 63-49 and held a double-digit lead for the remaining 11:06 of play.
Oscar Edelman '28 came off the bench and hit twice from long range in a span of less than 90 seconds while the Cardinals hit their free throws down the stretch, finishing the game going 17-for-22 from the line.
Five Cardinals finished with 10+ points including a team-high 20 from
Shane Regan '25 who went 7-of-14 from the floor and 6-for-6 from the charity stripe. Cormier finished with 16 points, eight rebounds, two assists, and two steals.
Nicky Johnson '25 had 15 points (6-10 FG), five rebounds, and six assists.
Hauser added 12 points while Edelman finished with 10 points (3-5 3FG). As a team, Wesleyan went 9-for-20 (45 percent) from three.
Wesleyan closes out the regular season at Colby on Saturday at 3 PM. The Cardinals have already clinched the #1 seed for the NESCAC Tournament and will host a quarterfinal round game next Saturday in Silloway Gym.
