HOBOKEN, N.J. (December 30, 2023) - Junior Jack Spellman scored 18 points, grabbed seven rebounds, and added four blocks as the Stevens Institute of Technology men's basketball team defeated Gettysburg 70-63 to win the Stevens Men's Basketball Holiday Tournament Saturday night inside Canavan Arena.

Spellman was named the Tournament's Most Valuable Player, as the Ducks have now won the Holiday Tournament for the second time and first since 2019. The victory is the Ducks' second-straight as they improve to 9-2. Stevens also improved to 6-1 at home this season. Stevens is now 1-0 against the Bullets, who fall to 7-4 with the loss.

The Ducks made three triples in the first five minutes of the game as the home side got off to an early 16-7 lead in the championship game. Coming off a dominant performance in the previous game, first-year Xander Singh made a layup with 14:44 left to restore the Ducks' nine-point lead. Stevens was able to maintain their distance, and extended their lead to 11 after a jumper by senior Mike Goodall with just under nine minutes remaining. That play forced a Gettysburg timeout, and the Bullets executed for two on their next possession. Following that, first-year Harmehar Chhabra drilled a three to put the Ducks ahead 27-15. The Bullets answered with a quick 7-0 run to trim the deficit to five. A few minutes later, graduate student Stephen Braunstein scored five quick fast break points as part of a 10 point scoring half that saw the Ducks advantage grow back to nine. The Bullets would be the better team down the stretch of the half, as they were able to claw their way back into the game, trailing the Ducks 37-33 at the break.

After the Bullets scored the first basket of the second half, Spellman was able to make a three and then Goodall stole the ball and scored on the next possession to put the Ducks back up seven. Gettysburg scored the next nine points to take a 44-42 lead and forced a Duck timeout. At the 11:51 mark, graduate student Tommy McGuire put back a missed Braunstein three that tied things at 51. Up two over a minute and a half later, Goodall converted a tough driving layup plus the foul to restore the Duck lead to five at 56-51. The two teams then went scoreless for the next three minus and some change, until Spellman made a layup down low, followed by a three from sophomore Matt Leming, to put the Ducks up 10. Gettysburg then scored a basket, but Spellman responded with a two-handed jam to regain the 10 point lead. Down 65-53, Gettysburg turned in their own jam with just over three minutes to go. With 1:04 to go, Gettysburg made two free throws and six seconds later scored a layup off of a turnover to make the score 67-63 in favor of the Ducks. The Bullets would play the foul game after that, and the Ducks held on to win the 2023 Stevens Men's Basketball Holiday Tournament.

Top Performers

• Spellman also added an assist and a steal.
• Braunstein scored 14 points and added four rebounds.
• Graduate student Conor Coffey finished with 11 points and five assists.
• Goodall scored nine points and added two steals.
• McGuire tallied five points and recorded four rebounds.
• Stevens shot 42.9 percent (24-56) from the field and 42.1 percent (8-19) from three. The Ducks also went 14-26 (53.8%) from the line.

The Opponent

• Jordan Stafford scored 20 points and added nine rebounds.
• Antonello Baggi secured a double-double with 14 points and 12 rebounds.
• Akim Joseph added seven points and six boards.
• Gettysburg shot 40.6 percent (26-64) from the field and 26.3 percent (5-19) from three. They also went 6-9 from the free throw line (66.7%).

Around the MAC Freedom

• Hamilton 62, DeSales 72 F/FRI
• Rutgers-Camden 76, Delaware Valley 65
• Scranton 76, King's 61
• Lebanon Valley 80, Drew 94
• Montclair State 83, DeSales 84
• FDU-Florham vs Bridgewater 7:30 p.m.

Up Next: The Ducks open up conference play on Wednesday as they host Lebanon Valley. Tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m. It will be the first ever meeting between the teams. Links for live stats and video are posted to stevensducks.com

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