SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – With the trip to Division I Yale in the books, it's back to work for the Skidmore College men's basketball team, who returns to Division III and Liberty League action this weekend with a pair of mid-season tests.
The Thoroughbreds will begin a stretch of six of seven games at the Williamson Sports Center on Friday, hosting RIT at 7 p.m. They will finish the weekend at home against rival Hobart on Saturday at 4 p.m.
Skidmore (7-4, 5-0 Liberty League) is the lone undefeated team in conference play after five games, and holds a one-game lead over second-place St. Lawrence, who Skidmore beat in the league opener on Nov. 30. In Skidmore's last game on Tuesday against aforementioned Yale, the Thoroughbreds shook off a cold shooting start, hanging in against one of the best mid-major teams in Division I, before Yale pulled away in the second half of an 88-59 result in New Haven, Conn. In that game, the Thoroughbreds went on a pair of double-digit runs and held a high-powered Yale team without a basket during a 6:46 stretch to end the first half as Skidmore clawed back into the game.
Edvinas Rupkus and
Noah Meren each tallied 13 points to lead the Skidmore efforts in that game. Meren tallied a double-double with 11 rebounds.
Jack Byrne came off the bench and scored 11 points and four rebounds.
Greg Skoric added nine points, seven rebounds, and two blocked shots.
Statistically, the Thoroughbreds have allowed the fewest points per game (66.0) in five league games, with a league-leading scoring margin of 14.8 points. Skidmore also leads in field goal percentage (52.2), 3-point shooting percentage (44.8), and rebounding margin (+8.4).
Meren still leads the league in scoring by a small margin, averaging 21.9 points per game. He leads the team in rebounds with 6.7 boards per game. Rupkus is also among the league leaders in scoring with 16.9 points per game and he leads the team in 3-point (.459) and free throw (.844) shooting. Skoric is third with 7.2 points per game and he leads the team with in field goal percentage (.569) and blocked shots (1.2).
Chase Ta leads the team and the league with 5.1 assists and sports the league's best assist/turnover ratio (2.1). Skidmore is a solid 3-point shooting team at 35.7 percent from beyond the arc, with Rupkus, Ta, Burne, and
Pat Gallagher shooting over 35 percent.
RIT (3-9, 0-5 Liberty League) is looking for its first league win this season. Leading the Tigers this season is the trio of Will Atkinson, Chuck Okehie, and Jaymee Rosser. Atkinson leads the team in scoring at (11.2 ppg), and assists (2.8 apg). Rosser is right behind at 9.8 points and is their team's top 3-point threat, hitting 41.8 percent from beyond the arc. Okehie is third at 9.8 points per game, leading the team in shooting percentage (.527).
RIT and Skidmore split the season series last year, with each team winning on the road.
Yet another chapter of a budding Skidmore rivalry with Hobart (6-6, 3-2 Liberty League) begins this year, as the teams meet for the first time since Skidmore's victory over regular season champion Hobart in Geneva in the Liberty League semifinal last year. The year before, it was Hobart who stunned the Thoroughbreds as a lower seed in the tournament semifinals. Skidmore and Hobart are 5-5 in the last 10 games played in both the regular season and postseason.
Hobart's team is nearly identical from their 21-5 season in 2017-18, with its top four scorers in Colin Dougherty, Jamal Lucas, Tucker Lescoe, and Dan Masino all returning. Health has stymied Hobart all season long, but the Statesmen have received production from Dougherty, who leads the team in scoring at 16.9 points per game. Lucas has returned from injury and has been productive in his seven games played, at 14.0 points and 6.0 rebounds per game. Lescoe rounds out the double-digit scorers at 13.2 points and a team-leading 2.8 assists per game. Edens Fleurizard has been a force defensively in the paint for Hobart, leading the team in rebounds (7.1 rpg) and blocked shots (25).
