HARTFORD, Conn. – The 16^th-ranked Trinity College Men's Basketball team thumped visiting ninth-ranked Tufts University, 81-45, in a New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) clash at Oosting Gymnasium Saturday afternoon. The Bantams improve to 18-3 overall and 5-2 in conference play, while the Jumbos fall to 17-4 on the season and 5-2 in the NESCAC.
 
Prior to the game, the Men's Basketball program honored their departing seniors: Alex Douglas (Glen Cove, N.Y.), Sean Macarchuk (Croton-on-Hudson, N.Y.) and Will Dorion (Needham, Mass.), along with team manager Sabrina Codrington.
 
The Bantams had four scorers in double figures, led by junior Henry Vetter with a game-high 22 points, five rebounds and four assists. Junior Drew Lazarre netted 19 points off the bench, shooting 6-of-9 from the floor and 3-of-4 from three-point, while junior Jarrel Okorougo tallied 14 points, five rebounds and two steals. Dorion added 10 points, four rebounds and four assist in the win.
 
Scott Gyimesi paced the Jumbos with a team-high eight points and a game-high 10 rebounds. Dylan Reilly had seven points, Liam Kennelly notched six points and Sidney Wooten added five points.
 
The Bantams offense put pressure on the Jumbos early as five points from Vetter helped power the Bantams to a 12-4 lead. Lazarre poured in eight straight points as Trinity pushed the advantage to 20-9 with 8:12 on the clock. Okorougo scored six points down the stretch, including a put-back bucket in the final minute to give the Bantams a 34-19 lead at the break.
 
Trinity carried their momentum into the second half, utilizing a 15-6 run over the opening five minutes to set the score at 49-27. Vetter netted nine of the Bantams next 20 points as the Trinity lead swelled to 69-36 with 7:24 to play. Trinity emptied the bench over the final minutes, capped by a three-point play from Douglas at the 1:41 mark to capture the 81-45 win.
 
The Bantams dominated the glass, 42-33, the paint, 36-24, and off the bench, 31-22. Trinity connected on 26-of-65 (40%) from the field, including 8-of-22 (36.4%) from three-point and 21-of-28 (75%) from the free throw stripe. Tufts shot 16-of-52 (30.8%) from the floor, 4-of-28 (14.3%) from long range and 9-of-13 (69.2%) from the foul line.

The Bantams will be back in action when they travel to Bates College (10-10, 1-5 NESCAC) for a NESCAC tilt on Friday, February 7 at 7:00 p.m.