Canton, NY – After missing two weeks with a shoulder injury, junior Elson Pickering (Brooklyn, NY) proved his bum wing was just fine, scoring a game-high 24 points to carry the Clarkson University Men’s Basketball team to a 54-48 victory over top-seeded St. Lawrence in the opening round of the Liberty League tournament at Burkman Gymnasium.
The Golden Knights improved to 10-16 overall, and will face second-seeded Hamilton College at 3:00 pm on Saturday. The win was Clarkson’s first in the Liberty League playoffs. St. Lawrence, which was held to its lowest point total of the season by a wide margin, dropped to 17-9.
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The Saints jumped out to a 7-2 lead in the first few minutes, but the Clarkson defense really began to hold down the easy opportunities for the Saints for the remainder of the half. St. Lawrence responded with a similar defensive intensity, and neither team could get many open looks around the basket. With the game tied 16-16 with just under five minutes to go in the period, Andy Hoercher hit a 3-pointer for the Saints which started a 5-0 run. Clarkson pulled back to within a single point, but another 3-pointer at the buzzer, this time by Josh Sharlow, gave St. Lawrence a 24-20 going into the locker room.
Ryan Smith (Niagara Falls, NY) led the Knights with six points, while both Brandon Linton (Queens, NY) and Pickering added in five. Tyler Wright was a perfect 4-for-4 from the free throw line for St. Lawrence, and led the Saints with six points. Sharlow, Tom Wopperer and Bela Vonnak each added five in the first half for SLU.
Although St. Lawrence scored on its first possession of the second half, the Golden Knights went on an 11-2 run, headed by seven quick points from Pickering. Once Clarkson picked up the lead, the Knights employed a slow-down approach, keeping the high-scoring Saints with flat feet on defense and little rhythm on the offensive end.
With four ties and nine lead changes just in the second half, the game moved back and forth considerably. Pickering was a big part of the Knights back and forth tussle, scoring 15 of his 24 points in the opening ten minutes of the second half. The key shot late in the game was a 3-pointer from Keith Murray (Queens, NY) which rattled home in the final minute, giving Clarkson a six-point advantage.
Also coming up big in the waning moments was freshman Jonathan Hood (Cortlandt Manor, NY), who stopped what would have been a game-tying fast break lay up with a huge block, and grabbed two big defensive rebounds in the final two minutes. A loud and enthusiastic Clarkson fan base, which certainly controlled the mood in the gym, also helped the Knights in the tough road game.
Linton added in 9 points, 5 rebounds, and 6 assists for Clarkson, while Murray contributed 8 points and 8 rebounds. Tyler Wright led St. Lawrence with 10 points and 8 rebounds and Richard Williams produced 8 points and 10 rebounds. Clarkson also committed just 10 turnovers, while St. Lawrence lost the ball 18 times.
