Box Score

POUGHKEEPSIE, NY (February 19, 2010) -- The Vassar College men's basketball team kept it close for much of the first half against Hamilton on Friday night at the Athletics & Fitness Center, but the Continentals pulled away in the second stanza to win 71-53. Hamilton's significant size advantage was the difference tonight. As a team, they pulled down 16 offensive rebounds to Vassar's six and outscored the Brewers 40-20 in the paint.

Vassar is now 2-22 overall and 0-13 in the Liberty League. Tomorrow the Brewers host Hobart College in their final game of the season at 4:00 p.m., which will also honor lone senior Casey Black in his final collegiate game. Hamilton improves to 10-13 and 6-7 in the league and will play at Rensselaer tomorrow.

The Brewers came out of the gates looking strong largely thanks to the play of standout John Donnelly, who tallied a double-double with 16 points and 10 boards. Donnelly scored six of Vassar's first eight points, including a put-back jumper off of his own miss to tie the game at 8-8. Vassar's largest lead of the night came just two plays later, when junior Devon Luongo knocked down a three-pointer to put the home team on top, 11-9, but Hamilton's shooting started to heat up.

The Continentals shot 45 percent from the field in the first half, and through a combination of dependable three-point shooting and some mismatches in the paint -- Hamilton has seven players over six-foot-eight – they had built a 16-point lead, 29-13, with seven minutes remaining in the first half. Vassar was able to narrow the lead to eight as the intermission neared. Donnelly got two key buckets in the final minute, including one trademark hustle play in which he blocked a Hamilton shoot, tracked down the loose ball for the rebound, and went coast to coast for an easy lay-up. At the half, Hamilton led just 37-29.

But as has often been the case this year for the Brewers, Hamilton came out with a refreshed intensity in the second half and extended their slim halftime advantage to 15 in just six minutes. The Continentals shared the ball and the scoring; their 16 teams assists led to eight players scoring at least eight points. Vassar was able to cut the lead to under 20 a few times in the second half, but for the most part the shots weren't falling; Vassar shot just 6 of 24 from the field.

Jon Herzog followed Donnelly's double-double performance with 12 points, while sophomore Caleb McGraw chipped in eight points of his own.

For Hamilton, senior Jay Simpson recorded 10 points and a game-high 5 assists, and freshmen Ken Click and Eric Benvenuti added 10 points apiece.