HAMPDEN-SYDNEY, Va. (March 1, 2024) - Junior Jack Spellman scored 15 points, grabbed 19 rebounds, blocked six shots, and stole the ball a career-high five times, but it wasn't enough as the Stevens Institute of Technology men's basketball team lost to Farmingdale State 80-66 in the first round of the NCAA Tournament Friday afternoon. The game was hosted by Hampden-Sydney.

Stevens finishes the season with a 22-6 record, which was the most wins since the 2019-2020 season. Spellman finishes the year averaging over 4.0 blocks per game, which leads the NCAA across all levels. He was recently named the MAC Freedom Defensive Player of the Year this past Wednesday. First-year Xander Singh was named the MAC Freedom Rookie of the Year. Farmingdale State (27-2) moves on to take on the winner of Hampden-Sydney versus LaRoche tomorrow at 7 p.m.

After going down 6-0, Stevens scored the next seven points to take the lead. Graduate students Conor Coffey and Stephen Braunstein each made baskets while senior Mike Goodall converted an and-one. From there, the Rams blitzed the Ducks, going on a 10-0 run and a 20-4 run to go up 26-11. The Ducks trailed by as many as 20 in the first half. Down 42-23, first-year Tommy Scholl, the MAC Freedom Tournament MVP, made a three and then a two on the next possession to pull the Ducks within 14. Spellman made a layup with 28 seconds left in the half, but the Rams hung 49 on the Ducks in the first-half as they led 49-32 at the break.

Braunstein kicked off the second half with a triple to bring the Ducks some momentum. Stevens held around and after coming back in both the semifinals and finals of the MAC Freedom Tournament, the Ducks looked poised to come back again, as Goodall and Scholl made back-to-back threes to get the Ducks within eight with 9:55 to go. The luck ran out in Virginia, as Stevens would not be able to bring the deficit any lower. Following the run by the Ducks, Farmingdale State went on a 10-0 run to go back up 18. Stevens would end up getting it back to a nine-point game with just over a minute to go, but the Rams, who held the lead for all but a minute of game time, secured the win by making their free throws, as they advanced to the next round.

Top Performers

• Spellman also had an assist.
• Scholl scored 10 points and grabbed two boards.
• Singh scored six points and had seven rebounds.
• Braunstein had nine points.
• Stevens shot 37.0 percent (20-54) from the field and 29.2 percent (7-24) from three. The Ducks also went 19-34 (55.9%) from the line.

The Opponent

• Aaron Davis had 26 points and six assists.
• Nick Hurowitz scored 16 points and grabbed nine boards.
• Jevon Santos added 10 points.
• Farmingdale State shot 41.2 percent (28-68) from the field and 50.0 percent (10-20) from three. They also went 14-20 from the free throw line (70.0%).