The RPI men’s basketball team had a full weekend with key match-ups with St. Lawrence on Friday and Clarkson on Saturday. Rensselaer knew it would not be an easy week thanks in part to the injury bug that has plagued the team all week long.
On Friday, the Saints opened up the game with a seven-point lead before a lay-up from junior Sam Simmons put the Red Hawks on the board. Saint Lawrence held on to the lead for a good portion of the first half, going up by 11 at one point, but RPI fought back and cut the deficit to five. The Saints, however, got back on track as the closing minutes of the half slowly melted away, increasing their margin to 12, holding on to a 44-33 lead at the break.
Rensselaer played very strong when the game commenced in the second half. Three times the RPI men were able to make a comeback and cut the Saint Lawrence lead to two points including once in the game’s final two minutes, but they could not get over the hump to tie the game or take the lead.
The Saints held off the Red Hawk charge and won the game by a final score of 75-70, and improved their record to an impressive 17-4.
“It was a tough loss for us, especially because we have lost so many close games against the top teams in the league this season,” said senior Neal Wesson. “We just weren’t able to get over the hump, but I am proud of the guys for stepping up their elevated roles and playing hard in the face of adversity,” Wesson added of his teammates’ play.
St. Lawrence was led by sophomore forward Richard Williams, who scored 24 points on 10-12 shooting while grabbing seven rebounds. Senior Clay Hadley was the high man for RPI, draining five three-pointers on his way to 22 points. Simmons recorded a double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds.
When Rensselaer returned to action on Saturday versus Clarkson and with playoff implications on the line, the men stepped up to the task at hand, and responded for an impressive win with starters Ricky Philatre—a freshman—and Simmons unavailable for the contest.
In the first half, while Clarkson scored the first points of the game, RPI would capture the lead and not relinquish it for the remainder of the half. A strong showing from the likes of Hadley, Gordon, sophomore Dan Rourke, and junior Sam Zullo more than made up for the team’s missing pieces. The Red Hawks’ largest lead was 10, but they headed into the break with a five-point lead, 32-27.
In the second half the Red Hawks unleashed their fury and opened up a tremendous lead, shooting 60 percent from the field as they outscored their opponent 31-17 the remainder of the game.
The margin grew as the half progressed, and by the time the game clock expired, RPI found themselves on top by 20 points, winning by a score of 77-57. “We played very well together, and we did an excellent job setting up teammates for scoring opportunities,” said Wesson.
Wesson was the catalyst who fueled the Red Hawk attack by scoring 26 points and netting six three-pointers. Sophomore Graham Gordon chipped in with a modest 12 points and grabbed a game-high eight rebounds. Senior Jon Youngsman led the way for the Golden Knights, tallying 15 points.
“I feel like we’re a dangerous team, and can beat any team in the league if we can put together an entire 40 minutes of crisp basketball,” added Wesson. He continued, “We didn’t do that in the first half on the league season, so we’ve put ourselves in a tough spot, having to win probably four out of the last five games to make the playoffs.”
The team will try to do just that when it hits the road for more action this weekend with games versus Skidmore and Union on Friday and Saturday, respectively. While the men’s record stands at 11-9 on the season, they know if they can keep playing well and make it to the playoffs, they will be a difficult team to square off against. They know that if they can get in, then they can cause some damage.
