POTSDAM, N.Y. – The Skidmore College men's basketball team picked up its first road win of the season, defeating Clarkson 77-69 in Liberty League action on Tuesday night.
The Thoroughbreds improve to 4-1 in league play, and 9-5 overall. The Golden Knights fall to 6-6 overall and 1-2 in conference play.
Sophomore guard
Edvinas Rupkus had an efficient night from the floor, leading all scorers with 23 points on 11-for-17 shooting from the field, adding nine rebounds and four assists. Senior guard
Aldin Medunjanin scored 13 points, adding three rebounds and two steals, while junior guard
Jack Morrow scored 12 points, going 4-for-8 from 3-point range.
Forward Drew Zlogar led Clarkson with 22 points and nine rebounds. Derek Hart scored 18 points, while guard Malaquias Canery added 10.
"It was a good league win on the road tonight," said Skidmore head coach Joseph Burke. "Clarkson is one of the tougher places to play and they are really well coached. Our guys brought the necessary energy and really executed the game plan."
With Clarkson holding the 13-8 lead after 5:25 of play, Skidmore took control of the game with a big 19-7 run. Morrow and sophomore guard
Jack Byrne went back-to-back from beyond the arc to give Skidmore the 17-14 lead, and junior center
Marcus Jackson scored on the easy layup to give the Thoroughbreds their largest lead of the half at 30-21. Clarkson fought back, closing the half on a 15-7 as Skidmore held the 37-36 advantage.
Clarkson took a brief lead to begin the second half, taking a 40-37 lead. Once again, back-to-back treys by Morrow and Byrne gave the Thoroughbreds the lead, one it would not relinquish. Clarkson tried to mount a comeback down 11, reducing the deficit to as few as five on a few occasions, but Skidmore responded with a huge bucket each time to keep the Golden Knights at bay.
The Thoroughbreds shot 52.7 percent from the field in the game, holding the Golden Knights to just under 40 percent. Clarkson held the slim 36-33 rebounding advantage.
Skidmore will continue on its road trip, taking on RIT in Rochester on Friday at 8 p.m.
