Box Score Saratoga Springs, N.Y.-- Never quitting, the Skidmore College men's basketball team battled top-ranked Middlebury College for 40 minutes before falling 64-59 in non-league action Friday night at the Williamson Sports Center.
 
The Thoroughbreds take a 4-2 record into the semester break, while the Panthers remain unbeaten at 7-0.
 
Brian Lowry led three Skidmore players in double figures with 13 points. Terron Victoria and Gerard O'Shea had 12 each with O'Shea adding six assists.   Connor Merrill had eight points and four blocks off the bench.
 
Middlebury's Ryan Sharry and Joey Kizel combined for 42 of their team's 64 points. Sharry scored a game-high 24 points and had 14 rebounds, four blocks and four steals. Kizel had 18 points, hitting 10-of-11 free throws.
 
The game featured nine lead changes, including seven in the first half.  
 
Skidmore took an early 2-0 lead, but the Panthers used five quick points by Sharry to take a 5-2 lead.  Sharry scored his team's first 10 points as the Panthers scratched out an early 12-8 lead with 13:07 to play.   The Thoroughbreds retook the lead, 19-17, on a Victoria jumper at 6:31. Neither team lead by more than three the rest of the half, with the score tied 30-30 at the break.
 
Skidmore led by three twice over the first six minutes of the second half.  Middlebury regained the lead for good, 44-42 with 11:44 to play on a Kizel jumper.  The Thoroughbreds kept the Panthers within two possessions for the next 11 minutes, until a made free throw by Jake Wolfin gave Middlebury a 60-53 lead with 28.5 seconds to play. 
 
Victoria hit a three with 24 seconds left, to make it 60-56, but Kizel hit both of his free throws with 12 seconds left to get it back to six, 62-56.  Brian Lowery hit another three with eight seconds left to cut the lead to 62-59.  Kizel went back to the line to hit another pair of free throws with four seconds left for the 64-59 final.  Kizel was 9-10 from the line over the final three minutes.
 
Middlebury came into the game shooting 50 percent from the floor, but Skidmore held the Panthers to 33.3 percent on 20-60 shooting.  

"First, I would like to thank the fans. I thought the atmosphere was tremendous" said coach Joe Burke. "We are trying to create a culture around here and it is great to see so much support."

"We are at a point where we expect to win so we are disappointed with tonight's result.  That being said, I extremely proud of the effort especially on the defensive end. I thought it was a heavy weight fight till the end. Credit Middlebury for pulling it out.  We will get better from this game."

The Thoroughbreds are off until Dec. 29 when the team will face Merchant Marine in the D3hoops.com classic in Las Vegas. Middlebury return also returns to action on Dec. 29 when the Panthers host Curry College.
 
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Newspaper Box Score
Middlebury vs Skidmore College
12/9/11 8 pm at Williamson Center, Saratoga Springs, NY
At Williamson Center, Saratoga Springs, NY
MIDDLEBURY 64, SKIDMORE COLLEGE 59
MIDDLEBURY (7-0)
Ryan Sharry 9-15 5-6 24; Joey Kizel 3-9 10-11 18; Jake Wolfin 2-9 2-4 7;
Peter Lynch 2-8 1-2 5; Nate Bulluck 1-3 2-2 4; Dylan Sinnickson 1-4 0-0 2;
Dean Brierley 1-3 0-0 2; James Jensen 1-4 0-0 2; Nolan Thompson 0-5 0-0 0.
Totals 20-60 20-25 64.
SKIDMORE COLLEGE (4-2)
Brian Lowry 4-14 3-3 13; Gerard O'Shea 6-12 0-1 12; Terron Victoria 4-8 2-4
12; Connor Merrill 3-12 2-2 8; Kevin Dahill 1-1 2-2 4; Eli Johnston 1-1 0-0
2; John Mantas 0-0 2-2 2; Melvis Langyintuo 1-6 0-2 2; Kyle Clark 1-1 0-0 2;
Raoul Oloa 0-2 2-4 2; Nanribet Yiljep 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 21-57 13-20 59.
Middlebury....................   30   34  -   64
Skidmore College..............   30   29  -   59
3-point goals--Middlebury 4-16 (Joey Kizel 2-4; Jake Wolfin 1-6; Ryan Sharry
1-3; Nolan Thompson 0-3), Skidmore College 4-18 (Brian Lowry 2-8; Terron
Victoria 2-4; Connor Merrill 0-2; Melvis Langyintuo 0-2; Raoul Oloa 0-1;
Gerard O'Shea 0-1). Fouled out--Middlebury-None, Skidmore College-None.
Rebounds--Middlebury 50 (Ryan Sharry 14), Skidmore College 34 (Melvis
Langyintuo 7). Assists--Middlebury 8 (Joey Kizel 3; Jake Wolfin 3), Skidmore
College 10 (Gerard O'Shea 6). Total fouls--Middlebury 17, Skidmore College
22. Technical fouls--Middlebury-None, Skidmore College-None. A-835
Middlebury is ranked #1 nationally