TROY, N.Y. - The Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) men's basketball team battled back from a 20-point deficit to take the lead, but the Engineers were unable to hold it and lost to Ithaca College 62-60, ending a school-record 18-game winning streak. RPI, which had not lost since November 16, is now 18-3 overall and 13-1 in the Liberty League, while the Bombers improve to 16-5 and 11-3.

Trailing 44-24 with 49 seconds left in the first half and 44-26 at the break, the Engineers used the first 18 minutes of the second half to capture its first lead, eventually taking a 60-59 advantage on a put-back by sophomore guard Dom Black. Ithaca had a chance to tie it or regain the lead at the free throw line, but failed to do so. Rensselaer then had three consecutive possessions thanks to a pair of offensive rebounds, but was unable to extend its margin before a rebound by Ithaca's Skylar Sinon. The sophomore guard led Jake Mitchell with a long pass, which resulted in a fast break layup and a 61-60 advantage with 28 seconds left.

RPI missed on a corner jumper, Mitchell pulled down the rebound and was immediately fouled. He made the first free throw with nine seconds left but missed the second, allowing the Engineers to rebound the ball and get it to half court before calling a timeout. The Bombers countered with a timeout of their own before Rensselaer got the ball to Patrick Mahoney, its leading scorer, but his attempt from long range over a double team was unsuccessful.

Mahoney finished with a game-high 26 points on 11 of 18 shooting, including 4 of 6 from three-point range. He also had a team-best 11 rebounds for his second double-double of the season. Fifteen of his points and eight of his rebounds came in the second half when RPI outscored Ithaca 34-18. Black finished with 11 points, seven rebounds, four assists and two steals for the Engineers, who had a 43-34 advantage on the glass.

Ithaca, which made 16 of 32 shots in the first half, including 10 of 18 from three point range, was led by Mitchell's 14 points. Sinon finished with 13 and Riley Thompson scored 12. Sebastian Alderete had a game-high 13 rebounds to go with seven points and five assists.

The Bombers, who are in third place in the conference, host Clarkson University (7-14; 5-9) on Friday night. First place RPI, which equaled the 1990-91 team's school-record winning streak of 18 games, takes on second place Hobart College (18-3; 12-2) on Friday in Troy. Both games begin at 7:30pm.