Box Score
POTSDAM, NY -- Thanks to a season-high 22 points from senior guard Brandon Linton (Queens, NY), the Clarkson University Men's Basketball team remained alive in the Liberty League post-season hunt, gaining a 68-53 victory over Union College Friday evening.
The Golden Knights improved to 14-10 overall and 7-6 in the Liberty League, while Union dropped to 12-11 and 8-5. With a win over Skidmore tomorrow, Clarkson will at the very least force a tie at the bottom of the playoff standings and look for the tie-breakers to take over. Union's loss places them in a tie for second with Hobart and Skidmore, one game behind St. Lawrence, and can clinch a berth with a win and will look at tie breakers with a loss.
Union senior guard Joey Lokitis scored his 1,000th point in the game, finishing the contest with 17 points. He became the 17th player in Union men's basketball history to score 1,000 points and enters his final regular season game with 1,008 career points. He is the first Union player to hit the mark since Brian Scordato accomplished the feat on December 28, 2005 vs. Drew in Daytona Beach, Florida.
In the first half, the Knights buried eight 3-point field goals as the team raced out to leads of 20-3 and 25-5 in the first eight minutes of the contest. Though Union would reduce the Clarkson advantage to mid-teens on a couple of occasions, Clarkson still held a 17-point advantage (39-22) late in the half. However, a 6-0 run in the final moments pulled Union to within striking distance at 39-28.
Rey Jefferson (Budd Lake, NJ) was 4-for-4 from the 3-point line and led all scorers with 12 points in the just 10 minutes of action. For Union, Lokitis had 10 points in the opening half, with his final lay up pushing him past the 1,000-point threshold.
The second half started with Clarkson cold, and the Dutchmen took advantage. Following a lay up from Lokitis at the 12:41 mark, Union trailed just 45-44. Though Clarkson would regain a modest advantage, Union wouldn't go away, as Rusmir Dzanko converted a 3-point play at the 8-minute mark to get the Dutchmen back to within three points, 51-48.
However, Clarkson went on a 13-2 run over the next four minutes, thanks to 3-point field goals from Linton (two) and Jefferson, pushing the advantage to 64-50. Union was unable to reach back for a last run as the Knights finished with a 15-point buffer.
Linton scored a game-high 22 points, shooting 8-for-15 overall and 5-for-9 from beyond the 3-point arc. He also added 5 rebounds, 5 assists, and 3 steals. Jefferson contributed 17 points off the bench, and Murray added 10 points, 7 rebounds, and 5 assists.
Dzanko and Keven Donohue each scored 11 points. Union wraps up the regular season Saturday at St. Lawrence at 4 p.m. The Saints lead Hobart, Skidmore and the Dutchmen by one game and can clilnch the tourney host slot with a win. A Clarkson loss vs. Skidmore would clinch a Union tourney berth no matter what the Dutchmen do against the Saints.
