SCHENECTADY, N.Y. – The Union College men's basketball team rode a red-hot first half to its first victory of the 2024-25 season, as the Garnet Chargers cruised past SUNY Cobleskill in an 97-71 victory on Monday evening at Viniar Athletic Center.
Union (1-0) started the year on the right foot offensively, shooting 52.9 percent (37 of 70) from the field on the way to the most points in a victory since a 99-73 win over Vassar College on January 18, 2020.
Sophomore
Jack Plesser led four Garnet Chargers in double figures with 19 points on 8-of-13 shooting and also tied for the team lead with eight rebounds. Junior
Christian Dufort chipped in 18 points and classmate
Aren Cummings hit 7-of-9 shots on the way to a 17-point outing, while sophomore
Jaden Jauregui added a career-best 10 points.
Sophomore
Tanner Tedesco also filled up the stat sheet for Union, scoring 11 points, grabbing eight rebounds and dishing out a career-high 15 assists. The 15 dimes are the most by a Union player in over 30 years, since Steve Evans '94 recorded 16 assists against St. Lawrence University on February 26, 1993.
The Garnet Chargers came out on fire to start the game, shooting a blistering 63.9 percent (23 of 36) from the field and an even 50.0 percent (6 of 12) from long range in the first half to take control early. Tedesco was nearly unstoppable over the first 20 minutes, registering 12 points on 4-of-5 shooting, nine assists and six rebounds; he was one of three players to reach double figures before the halftime horn.
The home team jumped out to an 11-0 lead by the 3:12 mark of the opening half, helped by four points each from Plesser and Jauregui. Union led by a 20-7 margin by the 6:00 mark of the half, thanks to 9-of-11 shooting from the field, and built the lead up to 18 at 33-15 with under 11 minutes remaining in the half. The team continued to extend its advantage for the rest of the half, eventually taking a 57-31 lead into the locker room after a Tedesco pull-up jumper to beat the buzzer.
The teams traded buckets to start the second half before Union eventually built up its largest lead of the night after a pair of Plesser free throws put the Garnet Chargers up 68-39 with 15:05 remaining. The lead never shrunk below 21 the rest of the way, as Union was able to get the entire bench some time in the season-opener. Junior
Sam O'Toole and first-year
Zach Benmorits both picked up their first collegiate points down the stretch, while first-year
Will Yakoobian grabbed four rebounds and classmate
Harrison Collins chipped in two boards and an assist.
Despite cooling off in the second half, Union still finished the night shooting 37 of 70 from the field thanks to 46 points in the paint while also connecting at a 39.3 percent (11 of 28) clip from long range. The home team did an excellent job in transition to the tune of 24 fast-break points and also converted 15 Cobleskill turnovers into 20 points in an all-around excellent effort.
Union will return to action on Wednesday, when the team hosts Sarah Lawrence College for a 7:30 p.m. tipoff at Viniar Athletic Center.
