SCHENECTADY, N.Y. – Tautvydas Kupstas scored 27 points to lead the Skidmore College men's basketball team to a 79-71 victory over Union College on the road on Tuesday evening.
 
Skidmore improves to 12-7 (8-5 Liberty League) to maintain fourth position in the conference with four games remaining. Union falls to 6-8 in the league and 9-11 overall on the year.

"Just really proud of the guys," Skidmore coach Joe Burke said. "Tough 3-OT loss on Saturday, down a couple players again and having to come on the road and play Union, a team that is so well coached and hard to beat, is no easy task." 

Kupstas overtook Jackson Meshanic of Hobart for the lead in the league's scoring race with his seventh 20-plus point performance of the season. Kupstas bumped his average to 17.3 points per game.
 
Greg Skoric continued his dominant play with his seventh consecutive double-double. He had 21 points and 12 rebounds. Harrison Eichelberger dropped 12 points with eight rebounds and three assists. Jake Walsh, in his first start since conference play began, scored seven points and dished out four assists.
 
Mike Manley led four Dutchmen in double-figure scoring with 16 points. Chris Lovisolo had 15 points, while Temi George scored 11 and Connor Cepiel had 10. Brian Noone led all players with five assists.    
 
The teams squared off in the first half nearly bucket-for-bucket, but it was the Thoroughbreds who led by one, 36-35, at the half.  
 
Union closed the first half and opened the second on a 16-2 run in which the Dutchmen went 7-of-12 from the field while the Thoroughbreds managed just one field goal in nine attempts to take its largest lead of the evening at eight.
 
Over an 11-minute span in the second half, in which Skidmore outscored Union 28-12, Kupstas scored 18 of his 27 points on the night. He drilled a 3-pointer to tie it at 57 before making three insurance baskets over the final four minutes of play.
 
Eichelberger hit two go-ahead 3-pointers down the stretch, including the tie-breaking bucket that put the Thoroughbreds ahead for good with 4:34 remaining. Skoric made three free throws over the last 18 seconds to ice it.

"We challeneged some guys to step up and I thought they really answered the call," Burke said. "I think we are developing a toughness about us that I like."
 
Skidmore returns to the court on Friday and Saturday at Bard and Vassar.