PLEASANTVILLE, N.Y. – On Friday night, the Pace University men's basketball team opened its 2025-26 campaign in impressive fashion, powering past Molloy University by a score of 83-57. The Setters delivered a dominant wire-to-wire performance in their home opener, using a 44-point first half and a balanced offensive attack to secure their first victory of the season.

From the opening tip, Pace's tempo and ball movement set the tone. After Molloy struck first, the Setters responded immediately with Paxton Davidson's early jumper and a strong inside finish from Ethan Robertson to jump ahead. Jaden Kealey added to the rhythm, and Jabari Nurse followed with Pace's first three-pointer of the night to extend the momentum.

Midway through the half, the Setters began to separate, using stops, transition baskets, and second-chance opportunities to ignite a 25-10 run. Kealey hammered home a fast-break dunk, Davidson drained consecutive threes, and Jayden James added a series of attacks to the rim to stretch the advantage. Davidson's fourth three of the half, with three seconds remaining, punctuated a dominant offensive showing, giving Pace a 44-26 lead heading into the break.

Pace kept its foot down as the second half opened, with Kealey scoring eight of the Setters' first 12 points to maintain control. Nurse continued his sharp perimeter shooting with another three, while James and Robertson fueled a second-half surge with emphatic finishes at the rim. The Setters pushed the lead above 20 on multiple occasions, never allowing Molloy to draw closer than 15. Contributions from across the lineup led the Blue and Gold to a convincing win to open the year.

Davidson led all scorers with 18 points on an efficient 7-for-11 shooting night, including a perfect 4-for-4 from beyond the arc. Kealey delivered a standout double-double performance, totaling 17 points and a game-high nine rebounds.

James added 11 points and five steals, Nurse posted 10 points with two threes, and Ethan Robertson chipped in eight points and seven boards to round out Pace's balanced offense.

As a team, the Setters shot 48 percent from the field, dominated the glass 42–30, and scored 58 points in the paint.

Next in store for men's basketball is day two of the Conference Challenge set for Sunday afternoon, as the Setters will battle out-of-conference foes, Queens College, at 3:00 p.m. tip-off at home.