Saratoga Springs, NY - Despite forcing 20 turnovers, including 17 steals, with an overwhelmingly active defense, the Clarkson University Men's Basketball team came up short against Skidmore College Tuesday night, falling 65-58 in Liberty League action.

The Golden Knights had their conference record evened at 4-4 and fell to 12-5 overall, while Skidmore moved to 12-5 and 6-2. Clarkson is off until next week when the team looks to exact some revenge against St. Lawrence on Tuesday. The Knights fell to the Saints by a basket a week ago.

The first half of Tuesday night's game was dominated by two runs that, at the end of the half, meant little as the two teams were separated by just two points. Over the course of five minutes, Skidmore built an 11-point lead, taking a two-point advantage and swelling it to double figures with an 11-2 run. Clarkson quickly responded with a 14-0 run of its own to reclaim the lead, sparked by a back-to-back 3-pointers from Jerry Coleman (Potsdam, NY). The Knights were able to trail by only two points at the half despite no free throw attempts and just a 40-percent shooting performance from the field (12-for-30) thanks to causing 10 turnovers by the Thoroughbreds.

The second half was close throughout as well, with the highlight coming early in the second half when John Coleman (Potsdam, NY) scored seven points in three minutes to turn a three-point deficit into a six-point margin for the visitors. Clarkson, however, held its last lead at the 10-minute mark and was tied with Skidmore at 5:05 (52-52). From that point, Skidmore quickly turned things in its favor with a 3-point field goal and a turnover which ended in a lay up for a five-point lead. Clarkson was able to keep the game close, but those events altered the course of the game and the Thoroughbreds were in control for the remainder of the contest.

John Coleman finished with 24 points, shooting 11-for-16 from the field, and added five steals. Marques Charlton (Deer Park, NY) had a slow first half, but finished the game with 15 points. Jerry Coleman also contributed 13 points. Clarkson shot just 3-for-19 from the 3-point line.

For Skidmore, Connor Merrill had a team-best 19 points, going 9-for-12 from the floor. Sakhile Sithole added 14 points and seven rebounds and freshman Aldin Medunjanin tossed in 14 points to go along with his four assists and three steals.