MEDFORD, MA (March 7, 2026) -- Senior center
Joshua Bernstein posted a big double-double of 24 points and 10 rebounds, while junior guard
Jon Medley helped spur a dominant second-half defensive performance as the No. 12 Tufts University men's basketball knocked off Catholic University 74-60 Saturday night in the 2026 NCAA Tournament Second Round to advance into the NCAA Sweet 16 next weekend.
The Jumbos (22-5) will be making their sixth trip to the Third Round of the NCAA Tournament, and their first since the 2024 season. The Jumbos will now take on New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) for Wesleyan University next weekend in Middletown, CT at a time to be determined.
The story of the game was the Jumbos ability to ramp up the defensive pressure late in the first half, which set the tone for the second stanza.
Down 10 with less than two minute to play, Medley helped Catholic (20-8) into two tough missed shots, both of which turned into buckets for the Jumbos including an and-one by first-year
Ricardo Nieves just before the half. On the last possession of the half, the Cardinals were unable to even get a shot off, as Tufts forced a shot clock violation to send the game into half with Catholic up 31-26.
The momentum continued into the second half, as
Dylan Reilly put the Jumbos ahead for the first time since early in the game with a triple to make it 37-35 with 16:38 to go. The Cardinals pushed back and regained the lead, as two free throws by Brian Herbert made it 43-40 with just over 13 minutes remaining.
Senior
Sidney Wooten connected on a three-pointer on the next Tufts' possession, starting an 8-0 run for the hosts that finished with a tip-in make by sophomore
Robbie Nyamwaya to put the Jumbos up five at 48-43.
The Cardinals pulled to within one at 48-47, but the Jumbos went on a 12-1 run over the next three minutes capped by a dunk from Bernstein to make it 59-48 with seven minutes on the clock.
Catholic would get its deficit into single digits on two more occasions, but the Jumbos were able to put the game away at the line as Medley hit all six of his free throws late to help clinch the win.
Bernstein was 11-of-15 from the floor overall, adding three blocks, three steals and three assists in 37 minutes on the floor. Medley was equally as strong, as he finished with 17 points on 4-of-8 shooting along with 9-of-10 from the line. He also added six assists, four boards and two steals.
Junior
Zion Watt posted seven points and six rebounds, and Nyamwaya tallied seven points and two blocks. Reilly and Nieves each had six points as well for the Jumbos, who for the second straight night had a slow start shooting but rebounded with a 53.3 percent offensive clip in the second half. Tufts was 45.0 percent overall (27-60).
After a slow start at the line, Tufts made 15 of its final 16 freebies to go 15-for-21 (71.4 percent) for the night. The Jumbos turned the ball over only seven times for the game, posting a 19-4 edge in points off turnovers and also had a 42-26 paint points edge.
CJ Ruoff had a team-high 23 points for Catholic, while Herbert also tallied 16 points and seven rebounds in the loss. The Cardinals were only 6-of-21 in the second half, and were 4-of-16 from three-point land for the game (25.0 percent).
Tufts will now take on Wesleyan next weekend, on either Friday, March 13 or Saturday, March 14. Game times and dates will be announced on Sunday, March 9.
--JUMBOS--
