SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY – An ice-slow start proved too costly to overcome as the Skidmore College men's basketball team fell to Vassar, 67-46, at the Williamson Sports Center on Tuesday evening.

The Thoroughbreds (6-8, 2-5 Liberty League) were limited offensively early, hitting just one field goal in the first 10 minutes as the Brewers (11-3, 7-0 Liberty League) quickly built a 20-point lead and never looked back. While Skidmore continued to compete throughout the contest, Vassar maintained control behind a strong presence on the boards, finishing with a 53-37 rebounding edge that led to 20 offensive rebounds and 19 second-chance points.

"You have to credit Vassar for taking it to us and taking advantage of our slow start. When you give up 20 offensive rebounds and turn over the ball 18 times, you will lose to most teams in the country, and you are definitely going lose to a good team like that. Bottom line is we needed to be better tonight and we were not," said head coach Joe Burke.

"I am holding myself accountable for where we are at. We need to get better and continue to look for ways to get the most out of this team. We are now starting three freshmen, and we need to find the right upper classmen who can excel in their roles. It's my job to put them in positions to do so. The goal here is not to just win games but it's to beat the best teams and win championships. We still have a ways to go to get back to that point."

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Vassar jumped out to a fast 13-0 start, before a Jacob Gooden free throw finally broke the scoring drought at the 14:03 mark that was followed by the first made field goal from Aidan Roy to cut the deficit to 13-3 with 13:54 to go.
• However, the Brewers did not allow any momentum by quickly ballooning the lead to 20 points, 23-3, with 10:13 left in the half, and would hold onto that advantage until the end of the half by holding onto a 44-24 lead at intermission.
• At halftime, Roy led Skidmore's scoring efforts with 10 points on an efficient 4-of-7 shooting, in spite of the team shooting a combined 9-of-27 from the field.
• Powered by a 10-2 run in the early stages of the second half, The Thoroughbreds cut the deficit to as low as 50-34 at the 10:03 mark.
• It was all Vassar from there, however, as the Brewers rebuilt the lead to as large as 23 points to cruise to the finish line for the win.

STANDOUT THOROUGHBREDS

• Roy scored a dozen points with six rebounds, three assists and two steals.
• Jack LaGarde finished with a team-high nine rebounds and three blocks off the bench.

UP NEXT
The Thoroughbreds host Bard on Friday in a 7:30 PM matchup.