![President Todd Pfannestiel poses with Jeremy Thurston chairperson Board of Trustees [left] and former chairperson Robert Brvenik [right] after accepting the university's institutional charter.](https://uticatangerine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/unnamed.jpeg)
Utica’s men’s basketball season came to an end on Friday, March 1 after a 83-54 loss against Trinity College during the NCAA Division III Tournament.
The Pioneers started their season in winning fashion against SUNY Potsdam with a 16 point victory. From there Utica kept their foot on the gas and finished the regular season with an Empire 8 best 22-3 record.
Utica clinched a spot in the NCAA Division III Tournament after winning the Empire 8 Tournament on Feb. 4. They won their first game of the Empire 8 Tournament by a score of 70-61 in a close game against fifth seeded Alfred University.
From there the Pioneers faced number 2 seed Nazareth University in the Empire 8 championship where they won by a score of 97-90. Justice Brantley had a team high 28 points in the victory where he continued the tremendous success that he found this season, leading the team in scoring with 17.2 points per contest.
Brantley became one of just 18 players to reach the coveted mark of 1,000 points. He reached the historic mark with a 20 point performance in a win against Houghton University on Jan. 27. The fifth year graduate student has been the leading scorer for the Pioneers over the last two seasons.
Heading into the NCAA Tournament Utica was on fire, coming off of a nine game winning streak and winners of 19 of their last 20 games. That all came crashing down in a blowout loss against Trinity College.
After trailing 35-22 against Trinity College at the half, Utica was outscored 48-32 in the second half as Trinity College shot a scorching 59.38% from the field in the second half after only shooting 41.18% in the first half of the contest. Ben Callahan-Gold led Trinity with 15 points while Brantley had a game high of 19 points
Trinity College currently has a 28-1 record (9-1 NESCAC) at the time of publication and beat number 1 seeded Williams College in the NESCAC Tournament Championship Final by a score of 59-52 to clinch a spot in the NCAA Tournament. After beating Utica, Trinity College went on to beat Swarthmore College by a score of 83-74 in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. Their next game will be against Tufts University in the Sweet 16.
After falling in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, it is a bittersweet ending to a successful season for the Pioneers. While graduate students Brantley and Thomas Morreale and seniors Jackson Atty, Damian Call and Luke Bourgault are ending their respective careers, Utica looks to be a contender for the E8 crown again next season with a strong core of players returning to program such as Dayion Thompson and Hagen Foley baring them entering into the transfer portal.
Some players, such as sophomore guard Ben Wittman, are using experiences from this season as motivation for next season.
“I am going to learn from the loss and try to improve by playing more physically, getting stronger, and coming back more confident to help my team win,” Wittman said.
Wittman said even with the heartbreaking loss, he still views the season as a success and wants to build on that even more next season.
“This season was down right amazing,” he said. “From start to finish the guys around me were dedicated and determined to do the things we accomplished this year. They are truly my family.”
Witman was not the only Utica player who had this mindset as freshman guard Thaddeaus Luke had a similar opinion.
“I thought we had a really good season and won the empire 8 Championship which was our ultimate goal,” Luke said. “The loss in the NCAA tournament is a good motivation tool to push us to get better everyday.”
