Wolinski Hits Five Three-Pointers, Men’s Basketball Pulls Away Late in 77-62 Win over Farmingdale State – Wesleyan University

MIDDLETOWN, Conn. – Locked in a back-and-forth dual throughout, the game-deciding 17-4 Wesleyan run saw the Cardinals hit three-pointers on five consecutive possessions late in the second half, which proved more than enough in a 77-62 victory over Farmingdale State on Saturday afternoon from Silloway Gymnasium. Wesleyan is 6-0 for the fourth time in the past eight seasons while the Rams, who won 27 games last season and had defeated the Cardinals in two straight seasons, drop to 2-4.
 
Zach Wolinski ’28 took on a leading role as the first-year stepped into his three-point shot with confidence, hitting on back-to-back trips down the floor to kick start the 17-4 run. Wolinski then grabbed a steal on the next possession, which led to a Fritz Hauser ’26 corner three, followed by another Wolinski make from distance and ultimately capped by Jackson Cormier ’26 connecting from the corner.
 
That three-point barrage took what was a 53-49 game and turned it into a commanding 70-53 lead with 4:58 remaining for Wesleyan. The Cardinals played solid defensively and went 7-for-8 from the charity stripe down the stretch to close out what was a comfortable 15-point win in the end.
 
The visitors, behind the sharp shooting of Michael Notias, took a 13-6 lead just 4:44 into play as the Rams’ leading scorer hit three-pointers on consecutive possessions and later pulled up on the fast break as he was the first player into double figures, needing just 10:28 of game action to hit the 10-point mark.
 
Trailing in the early going, the Cardinals got a major spark from their bench as Oscar Edelman ’28 hit from deep before baskets from Cormier, Josh Cameron ’27, and a three from Wolinski tied the score at 19-19. Wolinski hit again from deep to tie the score at 24 apiece before Ben Lyttle ’27 made a three-pointer from the corner to give Wesleyan their first lead of the game with 5:52 left before halftime.
 
The score tied two more times in the closing minutes but Wesleyan was able to claim a 35-32 halftime lead thanks in large part to their bench, which scored 20 of the 35 total points for the Cardinals in the half.
 
Wolinski and Shane Regan ’25 took over in the second half, as the backcourt duo each scored 13 points in the stanza, combining to score 26 of Wesleyan’s 42 points after halftime.
 
Points were hard to come by as the two sides combined to score just 15 points in the opening seven minutes of the second half. A mini 6-0 Cardinal run stretched Wesleyan’s lead to 49-39, but Farmingdale State answered right back with a 7-1 run of their own, setting the stage for the game-deciding 17-4 Cardinal run sparked by the five straight three-point makes.
 
Wolinski led a resounding effort from the Wesleyan bench, that combined to score 38 points in the win, outscoring the Rams’ reserves 38-8. The first-year guard scored 13 of his career-high 19 points in the second half, going 6-for-9 from the floor and 5-of-8 from three.
 
Regan scored 13 of his 19 points in the second half, to go along with seven rebounds (five offensive), three assists, three steals, and no turnovers. Nicky Johnson ’25 made it three Cardinals scoring in double figures as he finished with 10 points, five rebounds, and five assists.
 
Edelman hit two from deep on his way to eight points and three assists while Cormier finished with seven points and Cameron totaled four points and four rebounds.
 
Wesleyan finished +9 in turnover margin, committing just nine for the game while the Rams coughed the ball up 18 times.
 
Wesleyan begins a stretch of six straight games played away from home on Tuesday night with a 5:30 PM tip at Worcester State.