TROY, N.Y. – A game-winning free throw by senior guard Edvinas Rupkus as time expired made all the difference, as the Skidmore College men's basketball team remained undefeated in Liberty League action after a 70-69 victory at the East Campus Arena Friday evening.
 
Skidmore (6-3, 4-0 Liberty League) is now the league's lone unbeaten team after four games and begins conference play 4-0 for the second consecutive year. RPI falls to 6-4 and 1-2 in conference.
 
In what was an intense, back-and-forth game with 12 lead changes and nine ties, there was no question that the game would reach its conclusion in the final possession of regulation. Holding a six-point, 69-63 lead with 40 seconds to go, it seemed like the Thoroughbreds could rest a bit easy. RPI had other ideas, as Andreas Kontopidis hit a pair of free throws with 25 seconds left to reduce the deficit to four. RPI would trap instead of fouling and would get the steal, as Mitchel Wayand converted on the defensive play and the fast break bucket to bring the deficit to two with 18 seconds left. After Rupkus missed the front end of the 1-and-1, Kontopidis tied the game at 69 with the layup.
 
With overtime looming, Skidmore put on its collective capes. A last-second drive and layup by sophomore guard Noah Meren fell short, but Rupkus' instincts took over, getting the tough offensive rebound in the last second of the game, and drawing the foul as the buzzer sounded. He would provide the victory with the free throw in front of the RPI crowd as his teammates celebrated.

"Road wins in the league are always a dogfight and that certainly was the case tonight," said head coach Joe Burke. "RPI is a good team with good players and I am proud of our guys for just staying the course. We made it a little more interesting then it needed to be but I am pleased with how we executed on both ends of the floor at pivotal points of the game."
 
Rupkus ended with a game-high 21 points, leading four Thoroughbred double-digit scorers. He added seven rebounds, including the aforementioned offensive board. Fellow senior guard Chase Ta added 13 points, seven assists and two steals. Meren tallied 11 points, chipping in six rebounds and four assists, while freshman center Greg Skoric added 10 points and eight rebounds. Skidmore shot a healthy 46.6 percent (27-for-58) from the field in the contest.
 
Patrick Mahoney led RPI with 16 points, while Kontopidis added 15 points and eight rebounds. The Thoroughbreds would hold RPI to 39.7 percent (25-for-63) from the field in the contest.
 
Skidmore would fight off two early RPI leads in the first half. After the Engineers took a six point lead, layups by junior guard Pat Gallagher and freshman forward Ryan Murunge reduced the deficit to two (25-23). On the next RPI possession, Murunge blocked a Mason Memmelaar shot, and Meren scored on the other end to tie the game at 25 with 3:11 to go. RPI immediately went on an 8-0 run, taking a 33-25 lead with 46 seconds left. Rupkus hit a 3-pointer to barely beat the halftime buzzer as RPI lead 33-28 at the half.
 
RPI would try to hold off Skidmore in the second half, but senior guard Jack Byrne tallied five straight points to tie the contest at 49 midway through the period. The game went back-and fourth from there, before a Rupkus 3-pointer and layup in consecutive possessions gave Skidmore its first lead of the half, at 60-59 with 4:46 to go. It was the start of a 12-2 run as the Thoroughbreds staked a 67-61 lead in the final minute. RPI and Skidmore would both trade free throws in its next possession before the aforementioned dramatics in the final minute.
 
Skidmore will travel to Union to wrap-up the weekend on Saturday at 4 p.m.