SCHENECTADY, N.Y. – The Union College men's basketball team held a 10-point lead at halftime, but the advantage did not last as the Dutchmen suffered another last-minute defeat in a 70-65 loss to Bard College in Liberty League action on Friday night at Viniar Athletic Center.
 
Senior Brian Noone and junior Edward Baptiste tied for the game high with 17 points each to lead four Dutchmen in double figures. First-year Aren Cummings netted 12 points and senior Mike Manley added 11 as well for Union (2-14, 1-8 Liberty League).
 
Bard (6-10, 3-6 Liberty League) was paced by Tyler Bruns with 17 points and Greg Farrow with 15 points and a team-best eight rebounds.
 
With the score knotted at 10 early in the first half, Union went on a massive 22-4 run over the next 9:21 to take a 32-14 lead with 5:01 on the clock. The home team was 8-of-12 from the field and limited Bard to 2-of-16 shooting during the stretch, with the trio of Baptiste, Manley and Noone all chipping in five points apiece. The advantage grew to as many as 19 after a Manley jumper with 2:27 left, but the Raptors closed on an 11-2 run to get back within 10 at 38-28 after 20 minutes.
 
Noone started the second half with a jumper to make it a 40-28 lead and the home team remained in the lead for more than 18 minutes in the second stanza, as Union continued to repel any Bard advances. However, Union went nearly four minutes without a field goal late in the contest, allowing the Raptors to change a 62-57 deficit with 4:32 left into a 66-63 lead after a three by Bruns with 41 ticks on the clock.
 
The home team was down four with 20 seconds left after two empty possessions, but a Manley runner made it a two-point game (67-65) with 14 seconds on the clock. However, Azriel Almodovar hit two free throws to again make it a two-possession game and Union came up empty on its last offensive chance.
 
After shooting 46.9 percent (15 of 32) in the first half, Union hit 12-of-31 shots in the second half to finish the game at 42.9 percent. Bard, meanwhile, shot 48.1 percent (13 of 27) from the field and 5-of-10 from downtown in the second half to finish at 39.3 percent (24 of 61) for the night.
 
For the game, Bard hit 11-of-26 attempts from long range, while Union was just 2-of-10 from beyond the arc. The home team also missed several chances from the charity stripe, missing 7-of-10 attempts in the second half and hitting only 9 of 18 overall.
 
Union will return to action tomorrow with a matchup against Ithaca College beginning at 4 p.m.