Charlotte, N.C.- The Denison men's basketball team's four-game win streak came to a halt after falling to The College of New Jersey (TCNJ) 76-66, in game one of the Jay Bilas Classic. Denison falls to 6-3 for the season, while TCNJ improves to 8-3 overall. 

First Half: The Big Red and the Lions opened the first half trading baskets for the first ten minutes, with neither team pulling away, until a fastbreak layup by TCNJ extended the single-possession lead to five. A minute later, the Lions would balloon their lead to 11 and hold Denison to 30 points in the half. Despite being down by nine heading into halftime, sophomore guard Owen Giannoulias kept the Big Red in the game after scoring eight of the last 13 points scored in the half off the bench.

Second Half: In the second half, TCNJ's offense continued to click, going on a 9-2 run over the first three minutes of play to build a 16-point lead. Not backing down, the Big Red continued to claw its way back into the game, cutting the Lions' lead to as little as five points. With over 12 minutes to play in regulation, TCNJ continuously found the bottom of their net, hitting some timely threes and sinking crucial free throws as time wound down to stifle any of Denison's comeback chances and ultimately put the game away.

Team Highlights

• Owen Giannoulias led the team in scoring, putting in a career high of 20 points. He also pulled in five rebounds and dished out three assists.

• Junior Kellon Smith tallied 10 points and grabbed nine rebounds on the day.

• The Big Red Bench outscored the Lions 31 to 6.

• Six Big Red recorded five or more rebounds, with Smith and Luke Salkowski grabbing nine and eight, respectively.

Up Next: 

Denison will continue their Jay Bilas action in North Carolina, taking on Christopher Newport University tomorrow, Saturday, December 20th at 3 p.m.