SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – The Skidmore College men's basketball team looks to keep its high standing in the Liberty League rankings this weekend, continuing its long road trip with contests at Bard and Ithaca.
 
In one of its longest road weekend swings in the season, the Thoroughbreds will take on Bard in Annandale-On-Hudson on Friday at 8 p.m., ending the weekend in the Finger Lakes at Ithaca on Saturday at 4 p.m. Bard will provide live stats and video for Friday's game, and Ithaca will provide live stats and video of Saturday's contest.
 
Skidmore (9-4, 5-2 Liberty League) comes into the weekend in a tie with Ithaca for second place in the league standings, as the teams near the halfway point of the long league season. Last weekend, Skidmore went 1-2 in three league road games, falling to Vassar on Tuesday and Hobart on Saturday, but defeating RIT in a wild overtime contest on Friday.
 
Edvinas Rupkus led the way throughout the weekend, leading the team with 26.0 points per game, shooting .464 from the field and 90.5 percent for the free throw line. For his efforts, Rupkus was named as the Liberty League Performer of the Week on Monday, his fourth weekly award of the season.
 
Rupkus currently leads the league and is 18^th nationally in scoring at 23.5 points per game. He also leads the league in 3-point shooting, hitting his shots at a 50 percent rate. Dakpe Yiljep is second on the team in scoring (16.0 points) and rebounds (5.9 boards). He's tallied double-doubles in two of the last four contests. Noah Meren and Jack Byrne are just shy of double digits in scoring, averaging 9.6 and 9.2 points per game, respectively. Bryne is one of the league's top 3-point threats, shooting it at a .367 clip. Chase Ta leads the team in assists with 5.3 per game.
 
Bard (5-9, 3-4 Liberty League) is much improved from last season, sitting in a four-way tie for fifth place in the league standings. The Raptors already have more wins this season than last, and have fought in close contests with solid teams such as The College of New Jersey, Hamilton, and Ithaca. In their last contest, Bard defeated Union at home by a narrow 83-81 score on Tuesday.
 
Bard is a balanced scoring team, with four starters in double-digit scoring. Of its four leading scorers, three are underclassmen, led by rookie Justyn Rogers and his 13.9 points per game. David Runcie, the lone upperclassmen, is second with 13.2 points, followed by sophomore Emmanuel Oyakhilome (12.1) and freshman Alijah Rue (11.3). Oyakhilome also leads the team with 8.0 rebounds per contest.
 
Skidmore split a pair of contests with Bard last season, with each team winning on its home court.
 
Ithaca (10-4, 5-2 Liberty League) sits in a tie with Skidmore for second place in its first season in the Liberty League. The Bombers took a road loss to Clarkson in its last game, falling by an 85-72 score. Before that, the Bombers were winners of three of their last four games, with wins over RIT, St. Lawrence, and Union.
 
Marc Chasin and Riley Thompson share the team lead in scoring with 14.6 points per game.
Peter Ezema is third in scoring with 9.7 points and is the team's leading rebounder at 8.9.
 
Skidmore and Ithaca met in a non-league contest last season, where host Ithaca defeated the Thoroughbreds by an 89-85 score. The two teams have split the last four contests of the all-time series.