SCHENECTADY, N.Y. – Senior Mike Manley led all players with 23 points as the Union College men's basketball team remained in the postseason hunt with a 73-58 victory over Rochester Institute of Technology on Monday night at Viniar Athletic Center.
 
The victory was an important one for Union (11-11, 8-8 Liberty League), which moved into a tie for fifth place with St. Lawrence University, a half-game behind fourth-place Skidmore College (8-7) and a half-game ahead of Hobart College (7-8) in seventh place. The top six teams (based on winning percentage) punch their tickets to the conference tournament.
 
Manley hit 9-of-18 shots from the field while adding four rebounds and three assists for the Dutchmen. Senior Chris Lovisolo continued his late-season surge with 13 points and three boards, while junior Justin Regis added 12 points, five assists and four caroms. Kevin Ryan paced RIT (7-12, 5-8 Liberty League) with 22 points.
 
RIT jumped out to an early 6-5 lead through the first four-plus minutes, but Union took control with a 13-0 run over 3:24 of game time, as the home team hit 5-of-6 shots and all three long-range attempts. The Dutchmen then closed the period on an 11-2 run, with Regis chipping in a team-best five points, to take a 39-15 lead into the half.
 
The Dutchmen shot 46.4 percent (13 of 28) from the field in the opening half, including a 50.0 percent effort from beyond the arc (6 of 12). RIT, meanwhile, connected on just 6-of-24 (25.0 percent) of its field-goal attempts, including misses on all eight three-point shots.
 
The Tigers never got closer than 16 points in the second half, as the Dutchmen did not allowed the visitors to string together more than six straight points. Manley scored 16 of his game-high 23 points in the second stanza, as Union shot 55.6 percent (15 of 27) from the field to close out the contest.
 
Boosted by sharp second-half shooting, the home team had its best shooting night of the season on Monday, finishing the game 28-of-55 (50.9 percent) from the field, while also connecting on 9-of-21 three-point attempts (42.9 percent).
 
Union will close out the regular season with a weekend trip to the North Country, beginning on Friday at 7:30 p.m. at Clarkson University.