ANNANDALE-ON-HUDSON, N.Y. – The RIT men's basketball team defeated Bard, 83-66, Saturday with junior guard Zac Ditzel leading the Tigers with a 21-point effort.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• The visiting Tigers jumped out to an early 8-3 lead, fueled by a three-pointer from Ditzel and a tip-in by first-year guard Xavier Nelson.
• The Tigers closed the first half on a strong run, capped by a buzzer-beating mid-court three from Ditzel to take a 36-27 lead into halftime.
• RIT opened the second half with a 7-0 spurt, highlighted by a jumper from Nelson and a three-pointer by junior forward Nolan Smith, extending the lead to double digits.
• The Tigers dominated defensively, forcing 18 Bard turnovers and recording 11 steals, including key takeaways in the second half by sophomore guard Danny Cohen and graduate student Josiah Turner.
• RIT sealed the win with balanced scoring down the stretch to finish the second half shooting better than 55 percent from the field.

 
GAME NOTES

• Ditzel shot an even 50 percent from the field to lead all scorers with 21 points on 6-of-12 shooting, including 4-of-8 from three-point range.
• First-year forward Nigel Pierman added 15 points and five rebounds, while Turner contributed seven points, seven rebounds, and three assists.
• Muhsin Muhammad, a sophomore guard, chipped in six points and seven boards.
• RIT shot 45.5 percent from the field (30-for-66).
• The Tigers also forced 18 Bard turnovers, converting them into 26 points.
• The Tigers improve to 2-4 overall and 1-1 in conference play.

 
WHAT'S NEXT
The Tigers travel south to take part in the Christopher Newport (Va.) Captain's Shootout Dec. 29 & 30 in Newport News, Va.