The 2025 Great Lakes Invitational
Key Performers, Game Recaps, and Takeaways from Day 1 at the GLI
D3 Hoops are back and we are thrilled to be covering the 2025 Great Lakes Invitational live from Washington & Jefferson College in Washington, PA.
For those who are unfamiliar, this is the best D3 Men’s Basketball event of the year outside of the NCAA tournament. Three of the eight schools are nationally-ranked and two are receiving votes in the D3hoops.com Top 25.
Day 1 was highly entertaining, including a number of games that went down to the wire. There were young teams on the rise and perennial powers battling for early season recognition. If you know a recruit that thinks they’re too good for NCAA D3 sports, we highly recommend tuning in for some of the Day 2 action at the GLI.
The 2025 GLI official logo. Event hosted by W&J College
Follow the 2025 Great Lakes Invitational
Watch (via PAC Sports Network)
Buy Tickets (W&J Box Office Link)
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Day 1 at the 2025 GLI
Day 1 of D3 Men’s Basketball action from Salvitti Family Gymnasium is in the books!
Here are our takeaways from each of the day’s four games as well as the players we felt were the key performers in each.
Game 1
(RV) Trine (3-1) - 57
#15 Mary Washington (5-0) - 72
Key Performers
Drew Panning - Double-double of 15 points and 13 rebounds (including 8 O-Boards) for the Thunder’s Junior big man.
Kye Robinson & Ulysses Young - The Eagles’ backcourt duo had 23 and 22 points, respectively, and controlled the game’s pace.
Recap of Game 1
Trine entered with a clear size advantage and dominated the offensive glass, but their sloppiness with the ball proved costly — the Thunder committed 18 turnovers, repeatedly giving Mary Washington extra possessions.
UMW came out firing from deep. A flurry of made threes put the Eagles up 16–7 with 13:10 left in the first half, highlighted by junior guard Jadon Burgess, who knocked down four triples on his own.
Sophomore guard Ulysses Young was outstanding as well. At one point he scored on back-to-back possessions — first a strong drive to the rim, then a smooth step-back three — helping UMW take a 38–32 lead into halftime.
In the second half, Mary Washington dialed up the defensive pressure, and Trine struggled to score. Despite repeated opportunities near the basket, the Thunder couldn’t convert, and UMW’s combination of shot-making and defensive intensity carried them the rest of the way.
Game 2
Marietta (4-1) - 81
(RV) Trinity (TX) (3-1) - 86
Trinity University (Tx) faced off against Marietta College in Game 2
Key Performers
Elijah Harden - 27 points and 7 rebounds, with plenty of clutch buckets - but 9 turnovers was tough. It wasn’t just him though as the Pios had 25 total TO’s on the evening.
Dylan Walker - 33 points and 5 rebounds in just over 37 minutes of action. He was there when the Tigers needed him with big shot after big shot. We thought it was very telling that in a 5 point win, his +/- was +21
Recap of Game 2
Trinity opened the game with sharp ball movement and smart half-court execution, but the Tigers struggled to finish around the rim — especially on second-chance opportunities. Marietta capitalized, hitting several key buckets to blunt Trinity’s early push. Though the Pioneers’ shot selection wavered at times, Elijah Harden (11 points) and Darius Carden (10 points) provided steady scoring to build a 42–28 halftime lead.
The Tigers came out of the locker room with a different level of toughness. Their improved defensive pressure and smarter decisions in the paint sparked a major run to start the second half. Where Trinity had thrown away possessions and missed short looks earlier, they began converting, trimming the deficit to five (42–37). Marietta answered with back-to-back threes — including another from D3 transfer Elijah Harden — to regain control.
But Trinity stayed composed. Their methodical offense chipped away until the Marietta lead was cut to one (52–51) with 11:40 remaining. The rest of regulation turned into a back-and-forth battle. After Will Bronson gave Trinity a late lead on a driving layup, Marietta tied it with two free throws with two seconds left, sending the game to overtime.
In the extra session, Harden struck first with yet another three, but Trinity responded. D2 Transfer Dylan Walker (Lubbock Christian University) delivered five clutch points in overtime, and the Tigers closed out an 86–81 victory, completing a gritty comeback against a tough Marietta squad.
Game 3
#8 Carthage (2-1) - 66
#21 Maryville (TN) (6-1) - 78
Key Performers
Antuan Nesbitt - He was the primary ball handler for Carthage and scored 15 on an efficient 6-9 shooting from the field.
Chase Morgan - Scored 24 points including 6-6 from the free throw line and some big threes. Collin Smith also provided some great minutes. We caught up with the duo post game to get their thoughts.
Recap of Game 3
Maryville generated quality looks early, but couldn’t get anything to fall, and Carthage capitalized by jumping out to a seven-point lead just four minutes into the game.
But the Scots have been on the GLI stage before, and they responded like a battle-tested group. Maryville ripped off a 16-point run late in the first half, flipping the momentum and taking full control on the way to a 40–26 halftime lead.
The second half brought more of the same. Chase Morgan, Jackson Garner, and Collin Smith powered the offense, combining for 54 points and eight made threes. Carthage mounted one push after the break, but Maryville calmly absorbed it and held serve the rest of the way, cruising to a convincing win over the nation’s No. 8 team.
Game 4
Case Western Reserve (3-2) - 69
W&J (4-2) - 70
CWRU faced off against the hosts, W&J, to close out Day 1
Key Performers
Shyam Patel - He made winning plays including a saved ball that turned directly into a made 3. He also added 14 points in just over 25 minutes and some steady ball handling against W&J’s pressure.
Alex Acosta - 17 points and 7 rebounds. He was the spark plug when the Presidents needed some energy in the second half. An Acosta banked in free throw was the game winner.
Recap of Game 4
This one had all the trappings of a first-round NCAA Tournament matchup — intensity, adjustments, and big-moment shot-making — making it a perfect close to Day 1 at the GLI. The teams went into halftime deadlocked at 36–36 as both sides spent the opening period sizing each other up.
The second half swung back and forth, with each team landing its share of punches, and it all came down to the final minute. Fittingly, the decisive moment was a banked-in free throw from Alex Acosta, sealing a hard-earned win for the Presidents.
W&J picks up a statement victory and now has the chance to go 2–0 tomorrow as hosts of the 2025 GLI.
W&J beats CWRU 70-69 to close out Day 1
Thanks for Reading!
We hope you enjoyed our coverage of Day 1 from the 2025 Great Lakes Invitational Tournament at W&J College (PA) - the premier D3 Men’s Basketball tournament in the country.
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