ROCHESTER, N.Y. – Freshman guard Noah Meren sank a free throw with no time remaining in overtime, lifting the Skidmore College men's basketball team to a wild 77-76 victory against RIT in Liberty League action at Clark Gymnasium Friday night.
 
Skidmore (9-3, 5-1 Liberty League) erased a 14-point halftime deficit to remain in a tie for first place in the league standings at 5-1. RIT falls to 5-8 overall and 3-3 in the league, sitting in fourth place.
 
After trailing for much of the overtime session, Edvinas Rupkus nailed a 3-pointer on a give-and-go play with Jack Byrne, tying the game at 76 with 43 seconds left. RIT's Troy Pierre-Louis missed a deep 3-pointer, with Rupkus diving over the baseline to keep possession for the Thoroughbreds to set up one final shot with 18 seconds left.
 
With Skidmore looking for the final shot, Dakpe Yiljep knifed into the lane for what seemed like an open layup, but was fouled intentionally, as the junior transfer set up for a pair of free throws to take the lead with three seconds left. Yiljep, the second leading free throw shooter in the conference, uncharacteristically missed both, but Skidmore got the ball back, and another chance to win the game. This time, Meren grabbed the inbounds pass and got into the lane, before he was fouled as the buzzer sounded. Getting a chance to win the game at the line, Meren missed the first shot but nailed the second as the Skidmore bench jumped up in glee.
 
"I thought that was a good toughness win for us," said head coach Joe Burke. "We had to find a way without few guys and we were able to. I give a lot of credit to our freshmen. Those guys are being forced to grow up quick and they both responded tonight."
 
Rupkus shook off a slow start to finish with 23 points, five rebounds, and two steals. Meren tallied 17 points and added six rebounds. Chase Ta added 12 points and seven assists, and Yiljep finished with 10 points and seven rebounds.
 
Robert Aguilera led four double-digit RIT scorers with a game-high 24 points, adding six rebounds. Marcell Davis tallied a 12-point, 15-rebound double-double.
 
After RIT jumped out to an early 15-4 lead, Skidmore responded with a 15-0 run to grab a 19-15 lead at the 10:40 mark. RIT would outscore the Thoroughbreds 20-2 in the final 8:59 of the half to stake a 39-25 lead.
 
After halftime, RIT led by as many as 16 points before Skidmore chipped away at the deficit. A 12-1 run over a 4:22 stretch, capped off by a Rupkus jumper, tied the game at 57 with 7:34 to go in regulation. With the game tied at 61 at the 4:36 mark, Skidmore made a surge, with a 6-0 run giving the Thoroughbreds a 67-61 lead with 2:43 remaining. A pair of Aguilera layups cut the Skidmore deficit to two, then Pierre-Louis tied the game at 67 with a layup with 38 seconds left. Skidmore had a chance to win it in overtime, but Rupkus' jumper with nine seconds left was off the mark.
 
Skidmore shot 40.5 percent in the game and tallied 11 second-chance points.
 
The Thoroughbreds finish the weekend with a trip to Geneva, taking on the co-league leaders in Hobart on Saturday at 4 p.m.