The Middlebury men's basketball team suffered a 97-87 loss to Baldwin Wallace in its opening game at the WNY Knee and Orthopedic Surgery Tournament hosted by Medaille in Buffalo, New York. The Panthers return to action on Saturday when they face St. Lawrence at 1:00 p.m. on day two of the tournament.

The Panthers went up 18-12 in their season opener when Matt St. Amour knocked down a three with 12:40 remaining in the first half. The Yellow Jackets answered with a 12-0 run to go on top 24-18 just two minutes later. Baldwin Wallace extended its lead to as many as 11 before Jake Brown capped a 4-0 run to close the half, making it a 43-36 game at the intermission.

The Yellow Jackets maintained a small lead into the second half before going on a game-changing 17-1 run over a 5:48 span, taking an 80-56 lead with 5:39 remaining. Middlebury battled back with an 8-1 spurt, but Baldwin Wallace held a double-digit lead until the final minute, when the Panthers were able to come within eight.

St. Amour poured in a career-high 33 points in the win, going 16-20 from the free throw line. Brown scored 14 points and added five assists, while Matt Daley netted 13 on 6-8 shooting with six boards. Jack Daly finished with seven points, seven rebounds and four assists.

Cameron Kohn was one of six Yellow Jackets in double figures, finished with 19 points, six rebounds and five assists on the night. Mike Kaminski added 17 points and six boards. Baldwin Wallace shot .519 from the floor in the game, connecting on 15-26 (.577) from behind the arc.