WORCESTER --- Tim Reidy (Needham, MA) drops a career-high 23 points for WPI men's basketball en route to a 64-54 NEWMAC victory against Springfield on Saturday afternoon inside Harrington Auditorium.
 
WPI, which is ranked 22nd in the latest D3hoops.com Top 25, improves to 13-2 on the season and 5-1 in NEWMAC action. Springfield drops to 5-10 overall and 2-4 in conference play. Additionally, with this win, Men's Basketball Head Coach Chris Bartley secures his 450th career win at WPI.
 
Springfield struck first on the scoreboard with a layup from Curtiss Blische (Barkhamsted, CT), but Brett Marelli (Hampton, NH) quickly answered with a jumper for the Engineers. WPI struggled offensively, missing their next seven shots, before Reidy ended the drought with a tough layup at the 16:00 mark, tying the game at 4-4. Reidy followed up with another layup on the next possession, but Zander Robinson (East Hartford, CT) responded with a jumper to even the score again.
 
Both teams then hit a scoring lull from 14:37 to 11:54, until the Pride's Josiah Evely (Toronto, Ontario) snapped the silence with a trey. The hosts went on a 6-0 run fueled by Aidan Callahan (Rowley, MA), who scored a layup, made a key steal, and converted 2-of-2 from the free-throw line. RJ Hutt (Mamaroneck, NY) quickly answered for the visitors, sinking a three-pointer to knot the game at 12-12 with 8:09 left in the first half. The scoring continued, with Reidy and Jack Bleier (Victor, NY) draining treys for the Engineers, and Xoren Livingston (Wayland, MA) added a three-pointer for the Pride.
 
The rest of the first half saw back-and-forth action, with the Engineers holding a narrow 24-22 lead at the break. The game was tightly contested, with the score tied six times and the lead changing hands five times. Neither team managed to pull ahead by more than four points at any point during the half.
 
For WPI, Reidy tallied nine points and four rebounds, Callahan contributed eight points, including 4-of-4 from the free throw line, and two steals, and Marelli added seven boards. For Springfield, eight different players added points to the scoring column. Zachary Campbell (Philadelphia, PA) led with four points and one assist, and Blische grabbed four rebounds.
 
Reidy opened the second half with a slick three-pointer, followed by a trey from Aidan Callahan, and another from Reidy. In between, the Pride's Livingston converted a three-point play. Springfield responded with a 7-0 run, highlighted by Sean Harrigan (Pittsfield, MA), who scored a layup and a three-pointer, bringing the visitors within one at 33-32 with 15:23 remaining.
 
The Crimson and Grey pushed their lead to six with another three-pointer from Reidy and a dunk by Marelli, but Springfield answered with a jumper from Livingston and a three-pointer from Harrigan, narrowing the gap to just one at 38-37 with 11:57 to play.
 
The game continued with back-and-forth action, with neither team holding a lead larger than eight. The Engineers held a slim four-point advantage when Reidy banked his fifth three-pointer of the game, extending the lead to seven at 50-43 with 6:36 to go. John Paulino (New Bedford, MA) responded with three field goals for Springfield, keeping the visitors within striking distance and cutting the deficit to just six again with 3:04 on the clock.
 
The WPI offense pulled ahead, with Reidy sinking two free throws and a crafty layup from J.R. Newman(Havertown, PA) pushing the Engineers' lead to 10 at 59-49 with 2:17 remaining. The hosts held on to their lead for the rest of the game, ultimately securing a 64-54 conference victory.
 
Reidy led the Engineer offense, sinking five three-pointers on his way to a career-high 23 points, while also contributing six rebounds. Callahan tallied 20 points, including 9-of-10 from the free throw line, four assists and two steals. Marelli stuffed the stat sheet with nine points, 12 rebounds, three assists, and two blocks.
 
For the Pride, Livingston guided the team with 12 points, two assists and a steal. Paulino and Harrigan each chipped in eight points and two boards. Blische grabbed seven rebounds and one steal.
 
WPI was held to 21-of-59 (35.6%) of field goals and sunk eight three-pointers, and Springfield made 38.9% (21-of-54) of shots. The Engineers saw an advantage in second chance points, 17-7, while the Pride held a slight edge of points in the paint, 24-18.
 
Both teams continue NEWMAC play next Tuesday at 7pm. WPI travels to face MIT in the battle of the Engineers, while Springfield returns home to host Emerson.  

Recap written by WPI Sports Information Student Assistant Maya Vartabedian '24 '25