Daytona Beach, Fla. – The Stetson Men's Basketball team found redemption against Milwaukee, the team that eliminated them from the CBI last season 85-67.
 
"I love how our team responded to a slow start, took the lead, and built on it for a strong finish," said Head Coach Donnie Jones.
 
The Hatters started out slow as they committed a handful of turnovers that saw Stetson fall behind 2-14 early. Down 5-16, the team would stop with the turnovers and explode for a 26-4 as they would go from being down 11 to up 11.  Jalen Blackmon would start the run with a layup followed by an and one layup from Stephan Swenson. Tristan Gross hit back-to-back shots, a jumper and one from beyond the arc. A dunk from Aubin Gateretse was followed by a three from Oglesby that gave the Hatters a 20-19 lead. Another layup from Gateretse was followed by a three from Giancarlo Valdez. Blackmon knocked down two free throws before cashing in on a jump shot. Alec Oglesby ended the run with an offensive board leading to a made jumper. The Stetson defense would hold the Milwaukee offensive from scoring a field goal for over four minutes with the time winding down in the first half. The Hatters would go into halftime with a 43-30 with the team committing only six turnovers. Blackmon was the leader at half with 14 points as Oglesby led the team with 6 rebounds. 
 
The second half consisted of less runs as the teams would trade baskets early in the half. With a little over 13 minutes remaining, the Hatters lead shrunk to 11 in a minute and a half, but the team would answer. An alley oop from Swenson to Gateretse pushed the lead to 14 and a few minutes later Gross would knock down another three increasing the lead to 18. Stetson would continue grinding each play as up with a minute and half left Coach Jones would go to the bench up 80-60. Naeem Lewis would hit a three to put the Hatters up 83-62 giving them the largest lead of the game at 21. Stetson would close out game 85-67.
 
Gateretse lead the way with a double-double totaling 26 points while snagging 11 rebounds. Swenson earned his first double-double of the season scoring 11 points and 10 assists. The Hatters as a team shot 55%/41.7%/100% for the game. They were able to put up 15 second chance points on 11 offensive rebounds. 
 
The Hatters will now face off against Central Michigan in the Championship match of the bracket. Central Michigan took on Siena in the game before the Hatters winning 70-56. The Championship game will take place at 12pm at the Ocean Center in Daytona Beach. 
 
"We have so much respect for Central Michigan," stated Coach Jones. "They played really well in a big road win at South Florida and an impressive win against an outstanding program in Siena. It's going to be a huge challenge in a short turnaround for tomorrow's game.