Oberlin, OH – Although the Clarkson University Men's Basketball team came out for the second half hot from the field, the Golden Knights could not maintain their pace, falling 56-49 to Washington & Jefferson on Friday evening.

The Golden Knights will play at 12:00 noon on Saturday, taking on Lawrence University.

The Presidents employed full-court pressure for most of the first half, causing the Golden Knights some problems in the opening minutes. Washington & Jefferson led by six early on, but Steve DeRegis hit a pair of 3-pointers among his eight points in the first five-plus minutes to tie the game. Finn Cork tied the game again 75 seconds later on a put back, but the Knights followed with a 4:31 scoreless stretch to see the Presidents gain an eight-point advantage. Aydin Kocak came off the bench and scored five quick points midway through the half for the Knights, but the last basket, which made it 22-19 was the final change to the scoreboard for a lengthy period. In that time, Washington & Jefferson went on a 10-0 run while watching the Knights go 0-for-7. A DeRegis 3-pointer late ended the run and put the tally at 32-22 at the break.

DeRegis led all scorers with 11 points in the first half, going 4-for-7 from the field with three 3-pointers, while Nathan Plotner had 10 points, 9 rebounds, 2 blocks and 2 steals for the Presidents.

Out of the break, the Golden Knights got going thanks to a Braeden Burns early make, sparking the Clarkson offense in the first handful of minutes. The Knights scored 16 points in six-plus minutes to get Clarkson within three following a Lorenzo Rappa steal and layup. Midway through the half, both teams went cold from the floor, as Clarkson went more than seven minutes without a point and the Presidents had a nearly five-minute stretch without a basket. Finn Cork ended the scoreless streak for the Knights, and Jack Dalgety went right with a layup and then got a free throw to cut the margin to one (49-48) with only 2:49 to go. However, Matthew Carte, who ended the five-minute run without a make for the Presidents, buried a 3-pointer at the other end to return the margin to four.

With less than a minute to play, Clarkson looked to reduce the margin to a single digit contest, but a miss gave Washington & Jefferson an opportunity to put the game away. Late in the shot clock, Matt Seidl found Nathan Plotner on the left hand side of the lane and Plotner went up for a two-handed dunk to put the gap at seven points with only 28 seconds to play. Clarkson had opportunities at the other end, but was unable to score again.

Finn Cork finished with a double-double, scoring 13 points to go along with 10 rebounds. DeRegis ended with 14 points and Jack Dalgety closed with 10 points and five boards. For the Presidents, Nathan Plotner had 12 points, 15 rebounds and a half-dozen blocked shots. Matthew Carte also scored 12 points, going 4-for-6 from beyond the arc.