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SCHENECTADY, N.Y. – The Union College men's basketball team got off to a hot start and never relinquished the lead after that as the Dutchmen began 2020 with a 79-69 win over Williams College on Saturday afternoon at Viniar Athletic Center.
 
The bench provided much of the scoring for Union (5-3) on the day, led by Andrew Laub with a team-high 18 points on 7-of-12 shooting. He was followed closely by classmate Nate Freeman with 16 points, while junior Jackson Mannix also chipped in 12 points off the bench in a complete team effort.
 
Head coach Chris Murphy went with a very different starting lineup on Saturday, and the move paid dividends as the home team jumped out to an early 17-5 lead after hitting six of its first seven shots from the field – including five from beyond the arc. Freshmen Justin Regis and Sean Regis combined for three of the three-pointers, while sophomore Chris Lovisolo sunk one from long range, junior Rhona Eseyade added a bucket, and junior Temi George led a defense that forced four turnovers at the other end.
 
The Union lead grew to as many as 13 points later in the first half, after Laub hit a layup and a three-pointer to put the Dutchmen up 34-21 with 4:38 on the clock. Union did most of its damage beyond the arc in the opening stanza, hitting 10-of-21 shots (47.6 percent) from long range in taking a 40-30 halftime lead.
 
Williams (5-5) predictably made a run in the second half, eventually getting within two points at 60-58 after a Henry Feinberg jumper with 5:55 remaining. But a jumper by sophomore Mike Concannon on the next possession relieved some pressure, and Laub followed with a three-point play to put Union up 65-58 with under four minutes left.
 
The Ephs got within a bucket on two more occasions, but the Dutchmen had an answer both times. Laub responded with a bucket the first time, while Freeman sunk a huge three to give Union a 72-67 cushion with under a minute to go. The home team then sunk 7-of-8 free throws down the stretch to secure the win.
 
Union shot 12-of-24 in the second half to finish the game at 47.4 percent (27 of 57), including a stellar 13-of-29 mark from long range, and also had an excellent 12-of-14 effort at the charity stripe. Also, led by six caroms each from Concannon, Eseyade and George, Union posted a 38-24 edge on the glass.
 
The Dutchmen will begin a stretch of seven straight Liberty League games next weekend, when the team makes the short trip to Troy to tackle Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute on Friday at 7:30 p.m.