SCHENECTADY, N.Y. – Sophomore Tanner Tedesco led four Garnet Chargers in double figures with 18 points and eight assists as the Union College men's basketball team outscored Clarkson University by 24 points after halftime to run away with an 83-63 Liberty League victory at Viniar Athletic Center on Saturday afternoon.
 
Tedesco led all players with his 18 points, shooting 8-of-9 from inside the three-point arc, and also added eight assists and five rebounds. Sophomore Matthew Garside followed up yesterday's heroics with 16 points on 5-of-7 shooting, and junior Christian Dufort added the game's only double-double with 12 points and 10 caroms. Sophomore Jack Plesser also registered 15 points, seven rebounds and four assists as part of a well-rounded effort for Union (8-7, 4-4 Liberty League).
 
Braeden Burns led three players in double figures with 15 points and eight rebounds for Clarkson (8-7, 4-4 Liberty League). Finn Cork added seven points and a game-high 12 rebounds and both Jack Dalgety and Casey Montesano chipped in 13 points apiece for the visitors.
 
Union broke open a close game with a dominating second stanza, outscoring Clarkson by a 58-34 margin after halftime to pull away. The Garnet Chargers shot an electric 69.7 percent (23 of 33) from the field over the final 20 minutes to more than double their first-half output in the second.
 
Clarkson led by a 34-29 margin 1:42 into the second half before Union started to rev up offensively, beginning with an 11-3 run helped by a pair of Tedesco three-point plays to take back the lead at 40-37. After the Golden Knights knotted the score at 40, the home team responded with another 16-2 run that built up a 14-point edge after a three-point play by sophomore Jaden Jauregui with 10:08 to go. The visitors could never get the deficit under 10 points the rest of the way, as the home team had an offensive answer at every turn.
 
The Garnet Chargers continued their excellent shooting even in the final minutes, as junior Kidder Lindley sunk a jumper and a three-pointer for his first collegiate points and first-year Zach Benmorits converted a transition layup to finish off the victory.
 
Thanks to its superb second half, Union finished the game shooting 52.3 percent (34 of 65) from the field, outscoring Clarkson by a 46-28 margin in the paint and posting an 18-5 edge in fast-break scoring.
 
The teams stayed within two possessions of each other for the entirety of the opening half, as neither team built up any strong advantage. The largest lead of the game came less than three minutes in after Union scored the first six points of the game, and Clarkson's largest advantage was four after a Burns bucket put the visitors up 20-16 with 7:38 left in the frame. The teams alternated baskets the rest of the way, with the Garnet Chargers unable to cut into the deficit.
 
Union shot 34.4 percent (11 of 32) in the opening half, but limited Clarkson to 30.6 percent (11 of 36) shooting at the other end.

After five straight games at home, Union will head on the road for the next two weekends, beginning with a trip to Vassar College on Friday at 7:30 p.m.