River Forest, Ill.—The Dominican University Men's Basketball team was set to start their 2026-2027 season inside the Igini Sports Forum against the Panthers of Principia.
Results:
Dominican: 70
Principia: 67
How it Happened:
-Junior
Braydon Murphy started off the game for Dominican with a layup assisted by Junior Ismael Ndiaye.
-The Panthers jumped out to an 11-7 lead with 11 minutes to go in the first half, but Junior
Kaden Dawson cut the deficit to just one as he knocked down a three. Junior
James Clay assisted on the bucket.
-Junior
Frank Paszkowski stopped the Principia run by making a layup on a fast break. Sophomore
Max Justic assisted on the bucket.
-The Panthers went into the halftime break scoring 4 straight points and holding a 26-21 lead.
-The Stars shot 31% from the floor in the first half, while Principia shot 40% from downtown.
-Junior
Aidin Custovic and Justic ignited a Dominican run to start the second half, 8-2, to take a 29-28 lead with 18 minutes to go. Custovic scored the first bucket, and Justic hit back-to-back threes in this run.
-The run for DU continued with Custovic making another layup in the paint, followed by Paszkowski hitting a three.
-The Stars were up 37-30 with 15 to play before the Panthers clawed their way back into the game when they tied it up 44 with 10 minutes to go.
-Murphy and Clay got the lead back up to 4 points with Clay making back-to-back free throws and Murphy followed it up with a layup.
-Principia would not go away, tying the game up at 53. The Panthers kept that momentum taking the lead with under 5 minutes to play.
-Dominican tried to find some momentum with Dawson making two straight free throws. The Stars did use this and took a 62-59 lead, thanks to Murphy making a tip-in layup, followed up by Paszkowski draining his third three of the half.
-Ndiaye gave Dominican the lead with just under a minute left as he made two straight layups.
-DU would not give up this lead for the rest of the game as Justic and Paszkowski all making free throws to ice the game.
-The Stars won 70-67 and shot an incredible 55% from the floor and 60% from downtown.
-Dominican collected 32 points in the paint with 22 points of turnovers.
Shining Stars:
-Junior
Braydon Murphy picked up right where he left off from his Sophomore year, earning Star of the game, picking up a double-double with 16 points and 10 rebounds. Murphy also picked up a block, a steal, and 3 assists.
-Junior
Frank Paszkowski collected 13 points and 2 steals.
-Junior
Aidin Custovic played a great first game in a Stars uniform, scoring 11 points with 2 boards and a steal.
-Sophomore
Max Justic was all over the floor in his first game in a DU uniform, scoring 7 points, 2 steals, 5 assists, and 3 rebounds.
-Junior
Kaden Dawson scored 5 points with 2 blocks and 5 rebounds.
Leading the Way:
Points: Murphy (16)
Rebounds: Murphy (10)
Assists: Justic (5)
Steals: Justic and Paszkowski (2)
Blocks: Dawson (2)
Minutes: Paszkowski (32)
What's Next:
The Dominican University Men's Basketball team starts the season off with a win and moves to 1-0 on the season. The Stars will be back in action inside the Igini Sports Forum with Alma College coming to River Forest for a non-conference match up. The tip-off is set for 6:00 p.m.
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