Potsdam, NY – In a game mired with fouls and disqualifications, the Vassar Brewers connected on some late free throws to hold on for a 68-65 Liberty League overtime win over the Clarkson University Men’s Basketball team Friday night at Alumni Gymnasium.
The Golden Knights dropped to 4-15 overall and 1-7 in the conference while Vassar improved to 11-7 and 3-5 in the Liberty League. Clarkson looks to get back on the winning track on Saturday afternoon when they host Rensselaer.
The Brewers raced out to a small advantage in the opening minutes and held on to a five-point lead with 12:40 remaining, 21-16. The Golden Knights went on a 13-3 run over the next seven and a half minutes to take a 10-point lead, 29-24, with 5:19 left in the half. After the Brewers cut the advantage to one points in the final two minutes, Clarkson ended with a 5-0 run, including a 3-point play by EJ Harrison (Troy, NY) with just 17 seconds left after a runner in the lane was followed by a made free throw.
Tyson Brazell led all scorers with 12 points in the first half, shooting 3-for-6 from the field and 4-for-4 from the free throw line. Lawrence Avitabile also added seven points, and three rebounds for Vassar. Russ Vitallo (Dracut, MA) scored a team-high nine points and contributed six rebounds for Clarkson while Harrison added eight points.
The Golden Knights enjoyed an 11-point advantage with 11:17 left in the game, but the Brewers chipped away at the lead and finally tied the game late in the second half. The tail end of the half saw numerous players disqualified with five fouls as the two teams combined for a season-high 56 fouls (28 for each team) as both teams scored the majority of their points from the free throw line.
In the overtime, neither team was able to muster much offensively until William Kieffer converted a lay up with 50 seconds remaining to give the Brewers a three-point lead. EJ Harrison was fouled on a shot attempt and buried both free throws with 32.6 seconds to bring the Vassar advantage back to one point. However, the Brewers were able to hit two free throws in their next four attempts while the Knights were unable to produce any points.
Vitallo finished with game-highs of 17 points, 16 rebounds and 4 blocks for Clarkson. Harrison added 14 points and seven rebounds.
Four players finished in double figures for Vassar, led by Tyson Brazell scored 17 points, shooting 7-for-8 from the line, and added eight rebounds. William Kieffer scored 15 points and Lawrence Avitabile scored 12 points before fouling out. Will Byrne also scored 10 points.
