WALTHAM, Mass.—Graduate student Collin Sawyer (New London, Conn.) scored 18 points to lead three players in double figures as Brandeis University defeated visiting Babson College, 71-61, in the opening round of the New England Big 4 Challenge on Friday night inside Red Auerbach Arena.

Babson, which won the 2019 tournament championship and had advanced to the title game in each of the last seasons, slips to 5-4 on the year. Brandeis, which won its last Big 4 Challenge crown in 2018, improves to 4-2 overall.

Graduate student Mitchell Kirsch (Atkinson, N.H.) finished with a game-high 20 points, six rebounds and four assists to lead the Beavers. Senior James Welch (Needham, Mass.), sophomore Kieran Dorney (Garden City, N.Y.) and first-year Nate Amado (Hanson, Mass.) each scored eight points in the loss.

Senior Chandler Jones (Springfield, Mass.) finished with 14 points, 10 rebounds and four assists, while junior Dylan Lien (Northboro, Mass.) added 13 points and three assists for the Judges. Senior Nolan Hagerty (Yarmouth, Maine) led all players with 13 boards to go along with seven points, four assists and three steals in the win.

Trailing 25-22 late in the first half, Brandeis seized control of the game with a 10-0 run. Sawyer and junior Darret Justice (Haymarket, Va.) both knocked down three-pointers to give the hosts a 30-25 lead at the break and first-year Toby Harris (Durham, N.C.) scored on the first possession out of the locker room to give the Judges a seven-point advantage.

Babson pulled back within three on a bucket by Dorney but Harris sandwiched a three-pointer in between layups by Hagerty, Lien converted a three-point play, and Jones canned another triple to give Brandeis a 45-35 bulge with 13:10 to play in the contest. Kirsch hit back-to-back trifectas and the Beavers got as close as 50-45 on a bucket by sophomore John Gorgol (Scottsdale, Ariz.) with 7:46 left, but Sawyer and Lien answered with three-pointers to push the Judges' lead back to 56-47 with 5:32 left.

The first half featured two ties and six lead changes with neither team leading by more than four. The hosts went up 17-13 on a layup by Hagerty at the 10:13 mark, but the Green and White responded with a 12-5 spurt that included a three-point play by Gorgol and a triple by first-year Parker Mason (Portsmouth, R.I.) for a 25-22 advantage late in the period.

The Beavers shot 43.4 percent from the floor and outscored Brandeis 34-18 in the paint but finished just 5-of-19 (26.3 percent) from beyond the arc. The Judges knocked down 11 three-pointers and outscored the visitors 17-8 at the free throw line.

Babson will face Salem State in Saturday's consolation game at 1 p.m., while the Judges take on Tufts in the championship game at 3 p.m.

GAME NOTES
• The Beavers are 21-24 all-time against Brandeis and have suffered back-to-back losses to the Judges.
• Babson is 11-4 since 2013 in the Big 4 Challenge and Friday's loss is its first in the opening round going back to 2012.
• The Beavers are 1-4 this season when allowing 70 points or more.
• Friday's setback is just the third for Babson in 21 games going back to 2018-19 when holding its opponents below 40 percent shooting.