JOHNSON, Vt. - The University of Hartford men's basketball team picked up its first win of the 2024-25 season on Saturday defeating Vermont State University - Johnson by a 86-83 final. 

Rapid Recap:

• Junior Drew Stack (Madison, N.J.) kicked off the game for the Hawks nailing back-to-back triples as the visitors took an early 6-2 lead. Sophomore Kaosi Chijioke (Atlanta, Ga.) joined the three-point party knocking down a three of his own as the Hawks led 10-4. The Badgers cut the deficit to just two points, but Stack knocked down his third three-pointer to keep Hartford in front. VSU - Johnson continued to chip away taking a 21-20 lead with 9:30 to play in the first half. Freshman Troy Santos (Taunton, Mass.) scored back-to-back buckets to get the lead right back. The Badgers evened the score again at 28-28 with 5:29 to play in the half. Freshman Reggie Selden (Franklinville, N.J.) scored to keep Hartford in front before Stack dropped in two more threes to extend the visitor lead to 36-30. Sophomore Zack Skinner (Berlin, Conn.) continued to keep the Hawks in front with a layup to push the lead to nine points with 2:04 to play in the first half. Freshman Cooper Galdenzi (Clinton, Conn.) ended the frame with a bucket to give Hartford a 46-36 lead headed into the break. 
• The Badgers chipped away to kick off the second half cutting the Hawks lead to 55-49 with 15:45 to play. Chijioke made a bucket to stop the run, but VSU - Johnson continued to battle back into the game eventually taking a 61-59 lead with 10:28 left in the second half. Stack put Hartford in front with another shot from deep, but the teams continued to trade buckets with Hartford leading 66-65. The Badgers kept jumping in front holding a 76-74 lead with 4:01 to play, but Selden netted a huge triple to get the odd number in front for the Hawks. The Badgers stayed in front holding the 83-82 lead with 37 seconds to play, but Skinner drove for a tough finish to get the visitors back in front. On the next possession Santos jumped the pass got the steal and made two free throws to get the Hawks the first win of the year. 

Post Game Press:
"They were definitely a tough match up size wise, but we were able to battle until the buzzer and come out with a win", said junior Drew Stack (Madison, N.J.). "I'm proud of the team with their ability to battle through the ups and downs throughout the game."

Inside the Numbers:

• Stack led the Hawks with a season-high 26 points (9-15 FG, 8-11 3PT) to go with two rebounds. Chijioke tabbed 15 points (5-11 FG, 2-6 3PT, 3-4 FT), four assists and three rebounds. Selden poured in a career-high 18 points (5-9 FG, 2-4 3PT, 6-7 FT) and two assists, while Santos added 10 points (3-11 FG, 0-3 3PT, 4-6 FT), five rebounds and four assists. 
• Raymond Baka led the Badgers with 30 points (13-20 FG, 0-2 3PT, 4-5 FT), 21 rebounds and eight assists. Matthew Carter added 23 points (11-22 FG, 1-5 3PT) and three assists. 
• The Hawks closed things out getting a 26-14 bench points advantage while also netting 13 threes opposed to just one for VSU - Johnson. 

Up Next: 
The Hawks will host Colby-Sawyer College on November 19th with a 7:30 PM tip-off. 

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