CLINTON, N.Y. – Ithaca College took a double-digit lead with 14 straight points midway through the second half and the Bombers held on for a 75-71 non-conference win against the Hamilton College Continentals on Hamilton's Coach Tom Murphy Court inside Margaret Bundy Scott Field House on Saturday evening, Nov. 15.
 

Season Update

• Hamilton, which received votes in the D3hoops.com Top 25 Preseason Poll, was playing its 2025-26 season opener.
• Ithaca (1-2 overall) also received votes in the preseason poll.

 

How It Happened

• There were six lead changes, including four in the first half, and three ties.
• After a slow start by the Continentals – the Bombers led for the first 11 minutes due in part to a suffocating full-court press -- David Melson '29 sidestepped to a layup plus the foul and earned the 3-point play that kickstarted an 11-0 run.
• A tough, driving layup by Jack Stowell '27 gave Hamilton its first lead at 26-25 with 8:40 left in the first half.
• Neither team led by more than four points the last 11 minutes of the half and the Continentals trailed 40-36 at halftime.
• Ithaca's Alex Penders hit a 3-pointer for his first points at the beginning of the second half and put the Bombers up by seven.
• Hamilton responded with a 17-6 spurt during the next five minutes and took a four-point lead. Garret Keyhani '26 had a putback layup that tied the score at 49-49, and a dunk and a layup by Jalen Reese '27 gave the Continentals their largest advantage at 53-49.
• Ithaca ran off the next 14 points for a 63-53 lead with nine minutes to go and the Bombers stayed in front the rest of the way.
• Hamilton wasn't done. With five minutes remaining, Reese hit a difficult spinning layup and cut the Ithaca lead to one at 65-64.
• Matthew Rideout '27 hit a free throw that made the score 73-71 with 35.5 seconds left, but the Continentals didn't score again.

 

Notes

• Melson topped Hamilton with 13 points off the bench in his first collegiate game.
• Reese led both teams and tied a career high with four blocks. He also tied a career best with 12 points and grabbed 13 rebounds.
• Keyhani chipped in 11 points and a career-high 10 boards.
• Rideout scored eight of his 11 points in the first half on the strength of two jumpers from beyond the arc.
• Stowell contributed nine points and a team-best four steals off the bench.
• Alister Walsh '29 and Evan O'Reilly '29 also made their college debuts.
• Evan Cabral led the Bombers with a game-high 22 points.
• Jaylon O'Neal made five of Ithaca's 16 steals and pulled down 10 rebounds.
• Matthew Zenker registered 16 points and four assists.
• Nick Lemmond made three 3-pointers and finished with 11 points off the bench.
• The Bombers sank 11 shots from long range while the Continentals had four.
• The Continentals enjoyed a 48-34 advantage in points in the paint.
• Hamilton shot 41.2 percent (28-68) from the floor and 57.9 percent (11-for-19) at the free-throw line.
• Ithaca shot just 37.2 percent (29-78) from the field and 6-for-13 at the line, but the Bombers' press helped force 22 turnovers by the Continentals.

 

Next Game

Hamilton hosts SUNY Potsdam (0-1) for another non-conference matchup on Tuesday, Nov. 18 at 5:30 p.m.