JOHNSON, Vt.- The Keystone College men's basketball team opened the 2025-26 season with an 88-80 win over Vermont State University Lyndon Saturday evening in the opening game of the Vermont State University Tip-Off Classic, hosted by Vermont State University Johnson.

This marks Justin Stern's first win as the head coach of the Giants.

Jden Golding (Jacksonville, Fla./Clay) pumped in a team‑high 25 points on 8‑of-16 shooting, adding six rebounds and three assists. PJ Murphy (Scranton, Pa./Scranton) contributed 19 points, dished out nine assists and grabbed six rebounds.

Ahmodrion Jones (Wilmington, Del./Delcastle Tech) chipped in with 14 points, seven rebounds and five assists. Demetrius Thomas (Atlanta, Ga./North Clayton) added nine points, 10 rebounds and three blocks.

For the Hornets, Wesley McIntyre delivered a standout effort with 40 points on 14‑of-25 shooting and 11‑of-14 from the free‑throw line. Max Kocha added 16 points.

The first half was a back-and-forth battle, with Keystone edging out a 35–31 lead at the break.

In the second half, the Giants opened a 17‑point lead after a string of threes and strong paint finishes, forcing Lyndon to chase the game.

But the Hornets answered with a surge of their own, cutting the margin to single digits and keeping it competitive down the stretch. Keystone, however, managed to hold off the rally and close it out behind timely free throws and defensive stops.

Keystone held a slight edge in shooting percentage (39.7 percent), and more importantly knocked down 33.3 percent of their three‑point attempts (9‑of-27) compared with Lyndon's 12 percent (3‑of-25).

The Giants also won the rebound battle (47 total rebounds vs. 37 for Lyndon) and forced 16 turnovers from Lyndon while committing only 10 themselves.

Keystone (1-0) will face the winner of VTSU Randolph/VTSU Johnson in the championship game tomorrow at 5 p.m.