WATERVILLE, Me. – On the verge of history, the No. 1 ranked Wesleyan men's basketball team closed the door on an undefeated regular season in convincing fashion, leading by as many as 41 points before defeating Colby 91-64 on Saturday afternoon. With the win, Wesleyan (24-0, 10-0 NESCAC) becomes the first team since the NESCAC was formally founded in 2000 to complete an undefeated regular season.
The win also clinches a 10-0 NESCAC regular season record, becoming the first team since Amherst in 2012-13 to go 10-0 in league play. Entering the NESCAC Tournament as the #1 seed, Wesleyan will host the #8 seed Mammoths on Saturday at 2 PM in the Quarterfinal round.
Facing a NESCAC Maine school for the third straight game, all on the road, the Cardinals showed no signs of wear as Wesleyan hit back with a 14-3 run after going down 8-0 early.
Ben Lyttle '27 and
Nicky Johnson '25 hit from deep to spark the Wesleyan offense which continued to produce throughout, as the 91 points are the most scored by the Cardinals against a NESCAC foe this season.
Wesleyan later led 25-21 with 10 minutes to go in the half before
Oscar Edelman '28 sparked a 10-0 run that pushed the Cardinals out in front by 14 points. Edelman, who had just hit a three-pointer a few minutes prior, scored the first seven points of the 10-0 Wesleyan run.
Leading by 16 at the half,
Shane Regan '25 hit from deep on the first possession of the second half, setting the tone for a torrid stretch that saw Wesleyan go on a 22-1 run. In that 22-1 run, Wesleyan scored a basket on eight straight possessions, while six different Cardinals scored in the run that gave the visitors a 37-point lead with 13:39 remaining.
Wesleyan went on to lead by as many as 41 points in the closing minutes, before ultimately finishing off a 27-point win over the Mules, their second-largest win in 57 all-time meetings against Colby.
Johnson and Edelman tied for the team-lead with 16 points each. Johnson stuffed the stat sheet with 16 points on 7-of-11 shooting to go along with nine rebounds, three assists, and three steals with no turnovers. Edelman was instant offense off the bench, going 6-of-7 from the floor and 2-of-3 from three for a career-high 16 points in just 12 minutes.
Regan finished with 14 points, six assists and three rebounds and
Fritz Hauser '26 added 12 points on 6-of-8 shooting with two blocks and two steals. Lyttle had nine points and six rebounds in 15 minutes while
Jackson Cormier '26 tallied six points, seven rebounds, and four assists.
Wesleyan shot 36-for-75 (48 percent) as a team and a perfect 10-for-10 from the free throw line. The Cardinals dished out 23 assists, the team's third-highest single-game total of the season, against just six turnovers which is tied for a season-low. Wesleyan was +11 in rebounding (45-34) which led to a 21-7 edge in second chance points while the Cardinals dominated points in the paint (48-18).
Saturday's quarterfinal matchup against Amherst will be the third meeting between the Little Three rivals this season. Wesleyan came out on top 82-69 at home on January 4 and earned a 72-60 win at Amherst on January 18.
