GENEVA, N.Y. – Juniors Tanner Tedesco and Matthew Garside combined for 45 points as the Union College men's basketball team outscored Hobart College by 18 points in the second half to run away with a 90-72 victory in a key Liberty League matchup on Friday evening at Bristol Gym.
 
Junior Tanner Tedesco led a well-rounded effort with 24 points and a game-high eight assists, hitting 11-of-18 shots from the field for Union (13-3, 8-1 Liberty League), which moved back into a tie for first place in the conference with the win. Classmate Matthew Garside went for 23 points and added a game-high six steals and three rebounds, while senior Christian Dufort added 14 points and seven boards. Junior Jack Plesser was limited to a season-low 12 points, but still chipped in a game-high four blocks to have an impact on the game.
 
Garside and Dufort helped to keep Union in the game in the opening 20 minutes, combining for 26 of the team's 38 points. Union shot 48.4 percent (15 of 31) from the field in the first half, but Hobart (11-5, 5-4 Liberty League) outrebounded Union by a 26-14 margin and recorded 13 second-chance points to stay in the game.
 
Union started the evening with a 9-4 run to open up the largest lead of the half for either side, thanks to five points from Garside. Nine lead changes followed over the next 17 minutes, as neither side could break away by more than five points. The visitors led by five again after a Dufort layup made the score 34-29 with 3:20 on the clock, but a 9-2 run put the Statesmen back in front before a pair of freebies by Plesser evened the score at 38 at the half.
 
The Garnet Chargers started the second half by hitting 14 of its first 21 shots to take a 69-56 lead with 10:06 remaining, with Tedesco scoring 16 of Union's first 31 points in the period. After Hobart got within five at 59-54 with 13:46 remaining, the visitors went on a 10-2 run thanks to six points by Tedesco and four by sophomore Scott Schmitt. The home team got back within eight with 8:04 to go, but Union responded with a massive 15-2 run over the next 3:27 to take an 84-63 lead with 4:37 on the clock. Two straight baskets by Plesser opened up a game-high 22-point edge and the visitors cruised the rest of the way. Tedesco scored a game-high 18 points and Plesser added 10 in the second half to push the Garnet Chargers to a victory.
 
Union shot 60.5 percent (23 of 38) from the field in the second half to finish the evening at 55.1 percent (38 of 69) overall, the team's second-highest shooting percentage of the season, to earn the team's first win in Geneva since 2018.
 
The Garnet Chargers will return to action on Tuesday, making the quick trip north to Saratoga Springs to take on Skidmore College at 7:30 p.m.