Potsdam, NY – Junior forward Sam Simmons shot 9-for-11 from the floor to score a game-high 18 points, including 14 in the second half, as Rensselaer defeated the Clarkson University Men’s Basketball team 67-49 in Liberty League play Friday night at Alumni Gymnasium.
The Golden Knights dropped their third straight contest and fell to 10-5 overall and 1-3 in the Liberty League, while RPI improved to 9-6 and evened their conference slate at 2-2. Clarkson hosts Vassar on Saturday while Rensselaer travels to St. Lawrence.
The two top defensive teams in the conference proved why in the opening half, though Rensselaer certainly played the superior defense in the first 20 minutes, holding Clarkson to just 13.0% from the floor (3-for-23). The only three shots that Clarkson made in the half were on lay ups, though the team was able to keep the game close with a 12-for-15 performance from the free throw line. Rensselaer also held a 22-15 advantage on the glass as neither team turned the ball over much (RPI – 5; Clarkson 3).
The Red Hawks held Clarkson’s top three scorers, EJ Harrison (Troy, NY), Erick Vigansky (Kenosha, WI), and Jon Youngmann (Corinth, NY), to only seven points in the first 20 minutes, combining to shoot only 1-for-14. Rensselaer had better luck from the floor overall, shooting 10-for-24 from the field. Graham Gordon, playing 11 minutes off the bench for RPI, led all scorers in the first half with six points.
Leading by only eight points after a 3-point field goal from Clarkson’s Vigansky, Rensselaer rattled off a 12-2 run to take a 47-29 advantage with 12 minutes remaining as the Red Hawks’ Simmons converted all five of his field goal attempts for 10 points during the run. While Clarkson was able to occasionally put the game back to within reach, Rensselaer’s lead would remain in double digits, thanks in part to the team grabbing 11 of the final 14 rebounds in the last 10 minutes of the contest.
Besides Simmons’ 18-point effort, Kyle Kowalczyk scored 13 points in 18 minutes off the bench for the Red Hawks. Erick Vigansky and EJ Harrison each closed the game with 11 points, with Harrison also contributing 6 rebounds and 5 steals. Vigansky turned an ankle early in the second half and was unable to make much of a contribution for the remainder of the game due to his limited mobility.
Rensselaer finished with a 39-24 edge in rebounds and shot 47.9% (23-for-48) from the field. Clarkson improved its shot percentage in the second half (12-for-25), but still finished at just 31.3% (15-for-48) for the game.
