Manhattan, NY – The USMMA men's basketball team fell to Clarkson, 71-59, Saturday afternoon in the final game of the NYU Holiday Classic.  Zach Karczewski (Austin, TX) posted a team high 18 points while freshman Matthew Miller (Augusta, GA) added 10 points.  Scott Dennin (Gilbertsville, PA) filled up the stat line with nine points, six rebounds, four assists, three blocks, and two steals.

Merchant Marine (5-6) built an early 9-4 lead as Miller, Dennin, and Kyle Yong (Wellington, FL) knocked down three straight shots.  The Mariners shot 44.2 percent (23-52) from the field for the game but was unable to overcome 21 total turnovers.  The Golden Knights would net the final seven points of the first half and held a 33-27 advantage at the intermission.

Clarkson (6-3) had three players finish in double digits, including a game high 19 points from Marques Charlton.  The Golden Knights earned 22 more free throw attempts than the Mariners, shooting 71.4 percent (25-35) at the charity stripe.  Felix Abongo dished out five assists while Clarkson committed just 12 turnovers during the game.

The Golden Knight lead reached 10 points at the 15:24 mark of the second half following a Charles McCallister three-pointer.  Karczewski cut the USMMA deficit to 47-41 with 10:40 to play following a conventional three-point play.  Clarkson would then go on a 10-1 run to build a 57-42 cushion, capped by another trifecta.

USMMA would continue to fight and closed to within six points with 2:57 on the clock as a Miller lay-up made it 61-55.  However, that would be the closest the Mariners would get as Clarkson went on to pick up the 71-59 victory.

Merchant Marine returns to the court Tuesday night as they welcome Stevens to O'Hara Hall for a 7:00 pm tip-off.