MIDDLETOWN, Conn. – The high-flying Wesleyan men's basketball backcourt duo of
Shane Regan '25 and
Nicky Johnson '25 was at their very best on Tuesday night, combining for 36 points in an 82-59 win over Emmanuel from Silloway Gymnasium. The Cardinals improve to 5-0 for just the second time in the past six seasons while the Saints remain winless at 0-6 this season.
In a game that Wesleyan never trailed, the Cardinals asserted themselves in the early going with a 7-0 run to turn a 7-4 lead into their first double-digit advantage just over five minutes into play. Emmanuel called an early timeout to try and stymie the run but Wesleyan continued to push, netting three-pointers on consecutive trips down the floor to make it a 14-0 run and lead 20-6. Johnson and Regan combined to either score or assist on all 20 points to give the Cardinals a 14-point lead.
The Saints began to hit back, thanks to
Vondre Chase off the bench as the junior scored 15 of his career-high 23 points in the first half alone. At one point in the first half, Chase scored 11 of Emmanuel's 13 total points scored in a span of 4:30, cutting the Cardinals' lead down to single digits.
Six unanswered Cardinal points turned into an 8-1 run that stymied the Emmanuel momentum and give Wesleyan a 42-27 lead. The Saints then answered right back with an 8-2 run in the final 1:12 of the half, going into the halftime locker room trailing 44-35.
Emmanuel continued to right, ultimately getting to within six points of the Cardinals in the early stages of the second half, but that was as close as the Saints would get for the remainder of play as Johnson canned a triple before converting a drive to the rim and
Jackson Cormier '26 scored a layup 42 seconds later as a 7-0 Wesleyan run made it 57-44 Cardinals.
Chase hit a triple that proved just a minor bump in the road as Wesleyan scored 11 more unanswered, as the Cardinals went on a on a 19-3 run in a span of just 6:33. Three-point makes from
Zach Wolinski '28 and
Sam Pohlman '26 sparked the run and gave the Cardinals more than enough cushion to win comfortably down the stretch.
Wesleyan's lead grew to as many as 25 points in the second half before ultimately closing out a 23-point home win, improving to 5-0 for the first time since the 2021-22 campaign.
Regan finished with a team and season-high 22 points (9-14 FG) with five assists in just 25 minutes of action as he dealt with foul trouble at times in this one. Johnson totaled 14 points, eight assists, six rebounds, three steals, and only one turnover in 30 minutes.
Ben Lyttle '27 joined the pair in double figures with 12 points.
Fritz Hauser '26 grabbed a season-high 10 rebounds to go along with seven points. Pohlman and Wolinski both finished with nine points.
Josh Cameron '27 had five points and seven rebounds (four offensive) off the bench.
As a team, Wesleyan shot a season-high 47.1 percent on their field goal attempts. The Cardinals went 10-for-27 from three, finishing with 10+ makes from three-point range for the third straight game. Wesleyan finished +16 in rebounding margin (45-29) compared to the Saints, outscoring the opposition 16-5 in second chance points. Wesleyan achieved a 22:8 assist-to-turnover ratio and forced 15 turnovers on the defensive end.
Wesleyan enjoys a few days off before playing host to Farmingdale State on Saturday at 2 PM. The Saints return on Dec. 2 to host Tufts at 7 PM.
*Release courtesy Wesleyan Athletic Communications Office