CU Men's Basketball Preview - at Ithaca/Union (2/9-10)

Trailing by two games in the win column with five to play, the Clarkson University Men's Basketball team needs to make a move if it hopes to earn a place in the top six for the Liberty League playoffs. The Golden Knights face Ithaca College and Union College in their final lengthy road trip of the season.

Live Stats/Live Video – at Ithaca College
Live Stats/Live Video – at Union College

The Series vs. Union: Union roared back to claim a 71-66 win in overtime a few weeks ago to improve to 42-28 in the all-time series. The two teams have gone to overtime on four occasions since 2012.

The Series vs. Ithaca: With a solid 85-72 win in the first meeting between the two teams, Clarkson improved to 19-59 all-time against Ithaca. Both Liam Ellis and Matt Higgins topped 20 points in the victory.

Key Stats for Clarkson (9-11, 5-8 Liberty League): The Golden Knights shot just 16-for-59 (27.1%) from beyond the 3-point arc this past weekend but still came away with a 1-1 record. Though sophomore Matt Higgins (17.1 points per game) has led the Knights in scoring most of the year by reaching double figures in 19 of 20 games, junior Liam Ellis has enjoyed the hot hand as of late. Ellis scored a career-high 36 versus Vassar and followed that up with 29 in a win over Vassar. Ellis ranks among the conference leaders in scoring (15.5 ppg) and assists (4.5 apg).

Key Stats for Ithaca (12-9, 7-7 Liberty League): The Bombers struggles from the 3-point arc are more pronounced than Clarkson's. For the last five games, Ithaca has been unable to top 30% from the 3-point line in any game, shooting a collective 26.9% (32-for-119). Despite the overall slump, sophomore Riley Thompson still leads the conference in 3-point field goal percentage (44.9%) while ranking second in 3-point field goals made (57). He leads the team in scoring at 14.0 points per contest, while senior Marc Chasin is averaging 13.5 points per game.

Key Stats for Union (13-7, 9-5 Liberty League): While Union hasn't been a great 3-point shooting team all year, ranking last in percentage (28.0%) and makes (126), the Dutchmen have excelled on the interior and on shorter jump shots. Union is shooting 49.9% on non-3-point attempts and has made 363 free throws at a rate of 75.0%, 55 more makes than any other team in the league. Senior Kevin Weckworth ranks second in the league in scoring at 20.7 points per game, and is averaging 24.8 points over his last five outings. In the previous game against Clarkson, Weckworth scored 40 points on 15-for-24 shooting with five 3-pointers.

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Players Mentioned

#3 Liam Ellis: G; 5' 11"; Junior

#30 Matt Higgins: G; 6' 3"; Sophomore

Players Mentioned

#3 Liam Ellis
: 5' 11"; Junior
: G

#30 Matt Higgins
: 6' 3"; Sophomore
: G

Scoreboard

Players Mentioned

#3 Liam Ellis

#30 Matt Higgins

Players Mentioned

#3 Liam Ellis

#30 Matt Higgins