Poughkeepsie, NY – Some late turnovers kept the Clarkson University Men's Basketball team from getting close enough to challenge Vassar on its home court Friday evening, as the Brewers held on for a 76-70 Liberty League win.

The Golden Knights saw their mark fall to 9-9 overall and 5-6 in Liberty League contests, while Vassar moved up to 12-6 and 8-3 in conference games. Clarkson finishes off its six-game road trip on Saturday, taking on Bard College.

A few 3-pointesr in the early going gave Clarkson the lead as Steve DeRegis, Braeden Burns, and Lorenzo Rappa each hit long-range shots in the first three-plus minutes of the contest, beginning a series of mini-runs for each team. Vassar responded with a 12-4 run over the course of just four minutes, only to see Clarkson go off on an 8-0 run thanks to bookend 3-pointers from DeRegis, putting the Knights back in the lead. However, Vassar responded with a 9-2 run, and the Brewers kept the advantage for the rest of the half.

Clarkson shot 12-for-26 from the floor and made six 3-pointers in the first half, but the Knights were held without a free throw and uncharacteristically turned the ball over 13 times in the first 20 minutes, helping Vassar gain the edge despite missing five more shots than the Knights.

Another 3-pointer from DeRegis put Clarkson up by two, 39-37, just three minutes into the second half, but Vassar came back with a 12-2 run in the next four minutes, capped by an Avery Lee 3-pointer to put Vassar up by eight. The margin would drop and then go back to its former spot on several occasions over the next six minutes until a Ben Rappa layup and Braeden Burns 3-pointer brought the Knights back to within one (60-59) with 6:20 to go.

Vassar would not relinquish the lead, however, getting just enough offense at the other end to maintain a small lead. A pair of free throws from Lorenzo Rappa had the Knights down by just two with 3:07 remaining, but the Brewers expanded the margin with a dunk from Nathan Denham at the other end. Some unfortunate misses and miscues by the Knights in the next handful of possessions allowed Vassar to gain a nine-point lead with a little over a minute to go. It was Clarkson that would then create some turnovers, but the Knights couldn't cash in on those chances until DeRegis hit a corner three late in the game, and that shot would get the Green and Gold as close as they could in the final minute.

Senior Jack Dalgety tossed in 19 points on 8-for-14 shooting and Steve DeRegis matched that total on 7-for-12 shooting, including five 3-pointers. Braeden Burns added 12 points and Lorenzo Rappa added nine points and four assists.

For Vassar, Denham led the team with 16 points on 8-for-13 shooting while also adding in nine rebounds. Avery Lee recorded 14 points and four assists, and Shea Fitzgerald pitched in 11 points.