Clinton, NY – Normally employing a slower paced half-court offense, the Clarkson University Men's Basketball team ran up and down with Hamilton College on Saturday evening and poured in its most points since December 2012, but it wasn't enough as the Continentals outlasted the Golden Knights 98-92 in the opening round of the Hamilton Invitational.

The Golden Knights dropped to 2-3 overall and will face either Colby College or Oswego State at 1:00 pm on Sunday afternoon. Hamilton improved to 3-1. The 92 points by Clarkson were the most since they tallied 93 against Paul Smith's on December 4, 2012, a stretch of 92 games. However, the 98 points allowed were the most given up by Clarkson in 140 games, short of the 107 the team allowed against Hobart on January 29, 2011.

Drew Zlogar opened the game with a 3-pointer to give Clarkson an early lead, but 90 seconds later the Knights relinquished the lead and were never able to reclaim it. Clarkson would tie the score twice shortly thereafter, but Hamilton went on a 13-2 run to double up the Knights at 22-11 just three minutes later. Clarkson chipped away and got within four (36-32) after a Malaquias Canery 3-pointer at the 5:00 minute mark, but Hamilton ended the half on an 18-9 run, completed by a Kyle Pitman trey for a 54-41 edge.

Hamilton continued its offensive barrage at the start of the second half with a 10-2 run to extend their lead to 21 with just four minute expired (64-43, 16:09), but the Knights responded with an 11-3 run of their own to get back into the contest. That momentum did not cease there, as Clarkson got hot from the perimeter with 3-pointers from Mike Hayduk, Drew Zlogar and Matthew Hornak, pulling the Knights back to within three with 8:49 to go (79-76). Though the Knights would keep scoring from there, they also couldn't stop Hamilton at the other end. Finally, Derek Hart hit a shot in the lane to tie the score at 90-90 with three minutes remaining. Although the two teams had produced 180 points in the first 37 minutes, they suddenly went cold, going scoreless for the next two minutes. Hamilton ended its brief drought with a free throw and buried six overall in the final minute while Clarkson missed two shots and turned the ball over once before finally converting with two seconds left, but at that point the margin was too much to overcome.

Zlogar poured in a career-high 30 points, shooting 9-for-17 from the field, including 8-for-14 from beyond the 3-point arc, just two makes short of tying the school record for 3-pointers in a game. Malaquias Canery also tossed in a career-high 22 points, shooting 7-for-10 from the floor and a flawless 3-for-3 from distance. Derek Hart added a double-double with 15 points and 10 rebounds, while Mike Hayduk also chipped in 12 points. Clarkson shot 16-for-33 from the 3-point line in the contest.

For Hamilton, Kena Gilmour scored a team-high 26 points in just 22 minutes off the bench, thanks to an 8-for-9 effort from the field and a 9-for-11 showing at the free throw line. Peter Hoffmann was also nearly perfect from the field, shooting 9-for-11 for 24 points. Both Jack Dwyer and Michael Grassey also tallied 12 points for the Continentals.