Potsdam, NY – Sophomore Keith Murray (Queens, NY) scored a career-high 14 points to go along with eight rebounds and six assists as the Clarkson University Men’s Basketball team continued to hold serve on its home court in league play, beating Vassar 65-56 in Liberty League action Friday night at Alumni Gymnasium.
Clarkson improved to 3-1 in the conference and 5-10 overall, while the Brewers lost for the first time since their tip-off tournament in November, dropping to 11-2 overall and 3-1 in league play. The Knights face Rensselaer on Saturday, while Vassar travels to St. Lawrence.
Clarkson’s run of impressive home performances appeared ready to continue from their first half play. The Golden Knights were stingy on defense, allowing the high-scoring Brewers just 19 points in the first half as Vassar shot just 7-for-20 from the floor. The Knights shot just under 50 percent for the half (13-for-27), and held a dominating advantage on the boards, outrebounding Vassar 21-10, including eight on the offensive end.
Murray was the Knights’ high-scorer with 10 points on 4-for-6 shooting, including a pair of 3-pointers. Clarkson also earned nine assists on 13 field goals, including five assists by Brandon Linton (Queens, NY) and four by Murray. Lawrence Avitabile led Vassar with six points, but he was able to get just one rebound in 17 minutes.
In the second half, Vassar closed to within eight points on a couple of occasions, but a tightly called game made it difficult for the Brewers, who missed 14 free throws, most of which came when the game was still in doubt. Clarkson spread its lead to as many as 18 points late in the game, and the Brewers made a comeback with the Knights’ reserves in play, but could not made enough of a dent in the margin. Clarkson held a double-digit lead for the majority of the half, and would have finished up with a double figure advantage had it not been for a last second 3-pointer from the Brewers.
Besides Murray, no other Clarkson player finished in double figures, with Ryan Smith (Niagara Falls, NY) and Brandon Linton accounting for nine each. Jon Swartz and Taylor Petruccelli each scored nine to lead the Brewers.
