HAVERFORD, PA – The RIT men's basketball team improved to 2-0 in 2014-15 with a 71-62 win at Haverford College on day two of the 23rd Annual Equinox Classic to claim the title. Freshman AJ Horde (Oak Park, MI/University of Detroit Jesuit), who led RIT with 22 points, and JP Reagan (Cortland, NY/Cortland), who added 16 points and 15 rebounds, were named to the All-Tournament Team.

The Tigers shot 45.8 percent from the floor on 27-of-59 shooting. RIT made 8-of-26 from behind the arc, and were 9-of-18 from the foul line. Horde led RIT with 22 points on 7-of-14 shooting, incuding three buckets from behind the arc. Reagan added 16 points, while Miguel Lopez (Guaynabo, Puerto Rico/St. Francis) scored 11 points off the bench for RIT.

RIT jumped out to an early 11-point lead when Sheldon Clay (Detroit, MI/University of Detroit Jesuit) laid a ball in off his own offensive rebound, giving the Tigers a 16-5 edge with 14:09 to play in the first half. Mitch Herman (Webster, NY/Webster Schroeder) drained a 3-pointer with 10:18 to play, equalling RIT its largest lead of the half at 23-12.

Haverford got back in the game, pulling to within two points on a 3-pointer by Anthony Reyes with 7:20 to play. On RIT's next possession, the Tigers showed their tenaciousness, snagging three straight offensive rebounds. Herman grabbed the first, and Kamron Davis (Syracuse, NY/Nottingham) had the other two, the final rebound leading to a Reagan 3-pointer, increasing RIT's lead back to five points at 28-25.

With the half winding down, Justin Winkler laid the ball in off an assist from Gibby Graves with six seconds to play tying the score at 33-33. On RIT's next possession Joe Stortini (Red Hook, NY/Loomis Chaffee) took a feed from Horde and fired a desperation shot from three as the buzzer sounded that hit nothing but net, giving the Tigers a 36-33 halftime lead.

RIT opened the second half with all the momentum, extending its lead to 41-33 on a jumper from Horde and a 3-pointer from Reagan. Reagan drained another three with 11:40 to play, matching the Tigers largest lead of the half at eight points.

Once again, the home side rallied, outscoring RIT 11-0 over a 4:29 span, to take a 54-51 lead on a layup by Matt Sherman with 7:51 to play. Sherman finished with nine points and had four steals on the afternoon.

Later in the half, Reyes' layup with 3:54 to play gave Haverford a slim 60-59 lead. Horde answered right back for the Tigers, draining a 3-pointer on RIT's next possession, giving RIT a 62-60 lead. The Tigers outsvcored Haverford 11-2 over the final 3:54 to seal the win.

RIT held a convincing 57-26 rebounding edge. Davis, who finished with five points and five rebounds, had three blocks for the Tigers. Lopez led RIT with two steals.

RIT returns to action next Friday when play begins at the 30th Annual Harold J. Brodie Tournament on the floor of Clark Gym. RIT will host Maritime College at 8 p.m. That game is preceded by D'Youville College versus Alfred State at 6 p.m.