POUGHKEEPSIE, NY (January 14, 2016) — The Vassar College men's basketball team looks to carry momentum from Tuesday's win over the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute into this weekend's games versus Skidmore College and Union College. The Brewers will host both games at the Athletics and Fitness Center, beginning with Friday's 8 p.m. game against Skidmore. Vassar will then finish its three-game homestead Saturday at 4 p.m. when Union comes to town.

Game Details
Opponent: vs. Skidmore College (7-5, 2-2 Liberty)
Links:
(Vassar Men's Basketball Home Page) (Roster) (Stats) (Schedule)
(Skidmore Men's Basketball Home Page) (Roster) (Stats) (Schedule)
Site: Poughkeepsie, NY
Facility:  Athletics and Fitness Center
Date: January 15, 2016
Time: 8 p.m. Friday
Live Coverage: (Live Stats) - (Live Video)

Opponent: vs. Union College (4-8, 2-3 Liberty)
Links:
(Vassar Men's Basketball Home Page) (Roster) (Stats) (Schedule)
(Union Men's Basketball Home Page) (Roster) (Stats) (Schedule)
Site: Poughkeepsie, NY
Facility:  Athletics and Fitness Center
Date: January 16, 2016
Time: 4 p.m. Saturday
Live Coverage: (Live Stats) - (Live Video)

What To Look For
The Brewers (5-7, 1-2 Liberty) will have their work cut out for them in this weekend's competitions against the Skidmore Thoroughbreds and the Union Dutchmen. Skidmore beat Union, 73-64, on Saturday behind an offensive effort from freshmen Jack Byrne and Edvinas Rupkus, who combined for 32 points. The Dutchmen trailed by as many as 15 in the first half and would only ever get within seven. While first-year students led the charge for the Thoroughbreds, upperclassmen were role players for the Brewers. Sophomore guard Jesse Browne (Barrington, RI/Deerfield Academy) and senior guard Erikson Wasyl (Durham, CT/Coginchaug) combined to score 47 points on the way to a 70-62 win over RPI. Expect the Brewers and Thoroughbreds to come in with high energy, as both teams will be hoping to extend their streaks.

A Look At The Skidmore Thoroughbreds (7-5, 2-2 Liberty)
Skidmore is ranked fifth of nine teams in the Liberty League standings after picking up a win at Union on Saturday. Freshman Edvinas Rupkus led the team with 17 points, adding five rebounds, a block and a steal coming off the bench. The effort earned Rupkus Liberty League Rookie of the Week honors for the second straight week and third time this season. In the previous game, he tallied 15 points with five rebounds in an 84-71 loss to the Rochester Institute of Technology. The guard is averaging 16.7 points and 5.2 rebounds, while hitting 44 percent of his threes. His consistency has helped Skidmore to reach second-best in the conference in scoring offense, as the Thoroughbreds average 76.3 points per game. They also lead the League in scoring margin, with a 4.6 differential.

On the defensive end, the Thoroughbreds hold their opponents to the League-lowest field-goal percentage at 38.5 percent. Vassar should be cautious of fouling Skidmore, as the Thoroughbreds have made 72.5 percent from the line, second-best in the conference. Skidmore attacks the glass and is tied for first with Union, averaging 41.1 rebounds per contest. While the Dutchmen are stronger at grabbing offensive boards with a League-leading 12.3 per game, the Thoroughbreds pull in the most defensive boards (29.8) in the conference. Two Thoroughbreds grace the Liberty League Top Five in scoring. Senior forward Erik Sanders (18 points per game) and Rupkus (16.7) rank third and fourth, respectively.

Against Skidmore All-Time
Since the teams' first meeting in 1989, Vassar is 18-25 against Skidmore. The Thoroughbreds have taken the past two games — both in 2015 — by a scoring margin of 131-113. The Brewers look to get back in their scoring ways against the Thoroughbreds. Just two seasons ago, they swept Skidmore in three games.

A Look At The Union Dutchmen (4-8, 2-3 Liberty)
Union has dropped its past two contests to put them sixth in the conference behind Skidmore and ahead of Vassar. Most recently, RIT narrowly escaped with a 104-101 win over Union on Tuesday. William Hython poured in a career-best 34 points on 14-of-24 shooting, while grabbing a career-high 18 rebounds. The center was one of four Dutchmen to score in double-digits: Greg King scored a personal-best 19, Deshon Burgess added 17 and Matt Liquori finished with 17.

The Dutchmen are third in the League in scoring offense with a 75.2 points-per-game average. They use 3-pointers to their advantage, averaging the second-highest amount at 8.3 behind Hobart, which averages 9.4. Burgess, who hits 35.2 percent of his triples, does a little bit of everything for the Dutchmen. The guard is second in the Liberty League in scoring and averages 18.3 points, 4.5 rebounds and 1.5 steals per contest, which is the fifth-highest percentage for swipes in the League. The junior has also shown durability, recording the fourth most minutes per contest at 34.6.

Another junior doing well for the Dutchmen is guard Zachary Bouton, who is third in the conference with 3.3 assists per game. Bouton takes care of the ball well, as represented by his 2.2 assist-to-turnover ratios, which is good for second best in the conference. Big men Hython and Ryan Whelpley are tough around the boards, ranking first and third in the Liberty League in rebounds per game with 10.1 and 8.6, respectively. The Dutchmen play a game at Bard on Friday before coming to Poughkeepsie.

Against Union All-Time
Since 1988, Vassar is 9-32 versus Union. Last season, the Brewers swept the series, 2-0, by a scoring margin of 157-147. Most recently, the game went down to the wire, as they escaped the Dutchmen 69-67 at the Athletics and Fitness Center.

Getting Closer
After dropping 19 points on RPI on Tuesday, senior Erikson Wasyl is now just 13 points shy of becoming the 14th Vassar College men's basketball player to post 1,000 points in his career. With his current 15.8 points per game pace, Wasyl should break the barrier sometime this weekend.

Tough To Crack
The Brewers' defense this season has been solid, allowing just 65.8 points per game, which is second in the conference. Vassar is allowing 40 percent shooting from the floor, good for third-lowest in the conference.

Career Night
Guard Jesse Browne enjoyed a career night, helping Vassar top RPI, 70-62, on Tuesday. The sophomore scored a career-best 28 points, while shooting 4-of-9 from 3-point range to help give the Brewers their first conference victory. The effort marks the third 20-plus point game this season for Browne.

Cleaning The Boards
The Brewers won the battle of the boards in dominating fashion Tuesday, out-rebounding the Engineers by a 20-point margin, 47-27. Vassar hasn't grabbed as many boards since Jan. 28, 2014 when they totaled 57 against RPI.

Active Adams
Junior Mickey Adams (Boston, MA/St. Sebastian's School) was active on the glass and efficient from the floor. The forward scored a career-best 10 points on 5-of-8 shooting, pulled down seven boards and dished out two assists in 25 minutes.

Top 10
Two Brewers rank within the Top 10 of Liberty League scoring. Erikson Wasyl (15.8 points per game) and Jesse Browne (15.2) are ranked sixth and eighth, respectively.

Double Digits
Three Brewers boast double-digit scoring averages. Senior guard Erikson Wasyl leads the charge with 15.8 points per game, sophomore guard Jesse Brown has 15.2 and freshman center Paul Grinde (Virginia Beach, VA/Cape Henry Collegiate) is shooting 56 percent for 13.3.

Dynamic Duo
Senior Erikson Wasyl and sophomore Jesse Browne are currently 1-2 in the Liberty League in minutes per game, averaging 35.7 and 35.5 minutes on the floor, respectively.

Stuffed
Vassar has used its defensive prowess to chalk up more blocks than its opponents in each of its previous three games. Freshman Paul Grinde is second in the conference, averaging 1.5 blocks per game (16 total).

Home Court Advantage
The Brewers have played just three games on their home court. Vassar currently holds a winning 2-1 record at the Athletics and Fitness Center and a 2-1 record at neutral sites.

Up Next
After this two-game homestretch against Skidmore and Union, Vassar will travel to play the Rochester Institute of Technology on Friday, Jan. 22 and Hobart College on Saturday, Jan. 23. The Brewers will then wrap up their road swing at Bard College on Tuesday, Jan. 26.