Box Score POUGHKEEPSIE, N.Y. -- The Skidmore College men's basketball team came up just short at Vassar, falling 71-67 Friday night in Liberty League action.
 
Tanner Brooks knocked down a deep three to bring the Thoroughbreds (14-8, 8-5 Liberty) within one in the final minute of regulation, but the Brewers (16-5, 8-4) Johnny Mrlik was clutch in the closing seconds, hitting a deep triple to put the game out of reach.
 
The loss snapped the Thoroughbreds five game winning streak. With the win, Vassar occupies the second spot in the Liberty League standings, while Skidmore is currently tied with RIT for third with the two teams set to square off Saturday, Feb. 22 in the final regular season contest for both teams.
 
Aldin Medunjanin led the Thoroughbreds with 18 points, Connor Merrill added 17 and added four rebounds, and Erik Sanders and Brooks tallied 12 points each.
 
The two teams traded baskets for the opening 15 minutes of play, but Vassar pulled away late in the first, closing out the half on a 9-2 to take a 40-32 lead into the break.
 
Erik Wasyl's 3-pointer with 16:17 to play stretched the Brewers lead to 11 at 46-37. Skidmore answered with a 12-1 run sparked by a Perun Kovacevic tip-in. Merrill registered six points during that stretch, tying the game at 47-47 with a lay up.
 
Mrlik and Wasyl gave the Brewers a four-point cushion at 53-49 with 3-pointers on back-to-back Vassar possessions. The Thoroughbreds again battled back within two as Sanders tallied four points in a 7-0 Skidmore run that brought it to 64-62 with 4:20 remaining.
 
After Mrlik converted on a jumper to put the Brewers back up by four, Brooks hit from beyond the arc to make it 68-67 with 43 seconds remaining in regulation, setting up Mrlik's final triple that secured the 71-67 win for Vassar.
 
Mrlik scored a game-high 22 points to go along with seven rebounds, Wasyl had 16 points and Alex Snyder pulled down a game-high 14 boards to go along with eight points and seven assists.
 
The Thoroughbreds shot 45.5-percent from the field (25-55), while the Brewers shot 50-percent from the floor and went 10-of-19 from three-point range.
 
"Tough loss tonight. I thought we played 20 minutes of basketball on the road and that won't get it done in a 40 minute game," said Skidmore head coach Joe Burke. "The first half really set us back and as a result the game could have gone either way at the end. Their kid Mrlik made three or four really tough shots to knock us out.

"We need to forget this one and come back tomorrow with the fire that we had during our winning streak."
 
The Thoroughbreds take on Bard Saturday, Feb. 15 at 4 p.m.