POUGHKEEPSIE, NY (February 22, 2016) — The Vassar College men's basketball team will face Skidmore College in Saratoga Springs, NY on Wednesday at 7 p.m. as part of the Liberty League Semifinals.

Skidmore College (16-8, 11-5 Liberty League) is seeded first, Union College (13-11, 10-6) is second and St. Lawrence University (13-11, 9-7) is third and Vassar is seeded fourth. Vassar, Rochester Institute of Technology and Hobart College all finished the season with 12-13 overall and 8-8 in-conference records, but because the Brewers won three games against those two teams, they earned the last spot in the tournament.

Game Details
Opponent: at Skidmore College (16-8, 11-5 Liberty League)
Links: 
(Vassar Men's Basketball Home Page) (Roster) (Stats) (Schedule)
(Skidmore Men's Basketball Home Page) (Roster) (Stats) (Schedule)
Site: Saratoga Springs, NY
Facility: Williamson Sports Center
Date: February 24, 2016
Time: 7 p.m. Wednesday
Game Coverage: (Live Stats) (Live Video)

What To Look For
Sunday proved to be an exciting day in the Liberty League with multiple teams playing for the postseason. Although Vassar fell on the road to Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, 71-63, RIT also lost, 87-69, against Union to secure the Brewers's trip to the postseason. This marks the second time in three seasons coach BJ Dunne has led the Brewers to the tournament. It also marks the 16th time in the program's 45-year history the Brewers have won 10-plus games in a season. 

Jesse Browne logged 22 points, five rebounds, three assists and a block, Mickey Adams earned a double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds and Erikson Wasyl finished with 11 points and a game-high four assists. The Brewers pulled within one point three times three times after the Engineers took the lead for good, 45-42, with 15:59 remaining, but were never able to get over the hump.

A Look At The Skidmore Thoroughbreds
The Thoroughbreds notched their fourth-straight win Sunday with a 73-70 victory over the St. Lawrence Saints. Skidmore, the defending Liberty League champions, have now finished in first place for the second straight season. Five Thoroughbreds scored in double figures: Edvinas Rupkus totaled 20 points with seven rebounds, three assists and three steals, Royce Paris and Jack Morrow scored 12 points apiece, while Erik Sanders and Marcus Jackson each had 10. Skidmore's bench outscored SLU 40-9. The Thoroughbreds also had better success from beyond the arc, hitting 11-25 (44 percent) threes, while the Saints were 4-18 (22.2 percent).

Skidmore is third in the Liberty with 72.1 points per game, while holding its opponents to the lowest field-goal percentage at 40.1. The Thoroughbreds have the second lowest percentage (32.1) from deep, while making the third most threes per game (7.8).  Skidmore holds the third best percentage (69.3) from the foul line, while opponents shooting 70.5 percent of free throws for second best. The Thoroughbreds hold the highest rebounding margin (2.0), grabbing 38 boards per game with opponents getting 36. Rupkus is second in the conference with a 55 percent shooting clip and fourth with 16.4 points per game and fifth with 1.5 steals per game, while Sanders is 11^th with a 41.9 shooting clip and sixth with 15.7. Sanders is also 10^th with 5.8 rebounds per contest.

Against Skidmore All-Time
Vassar is 19-26 against Skidmore all-time, dating back to their first meeting in 1989.  The Brewers beat the Thoroughbreds 69-64 on Jan. 15 before falling in a tough overtime battle 71-69 on Feb. 13.

Brewers In The Championships
This season marks the second time in three years that Dunne has led the Brewers to the Liberty League Championships, and it also marks the fourth time since 2004.

Fourth Seed Fortune
Since the tournament began in 2003-04 season, three fourth-seeded teams have won the conference championship. Union claimed the title in the 2004-05 season, Clarkson took it the 2007-08 season, and Hamilton won in the 2010-11 season.

Seasonal Comparison
With an 8-8 in-conference record, the Brewers have clinched more than six conference games for only the fourth time since joining the conference for the 2000-01 season. Furthermore, with 12 wins this season, it is the 16^th time in the program's 45-year history that the Brewers have finished with 10-plus wins.

Honor Rollin'
Browne earned a Liberty League honor Roll mention after averaged 17.5 points with a 46 percent shooting clip in Vassar's 1-1 week. He also totaled four rebounds, six assists, six steals and two blocks over games against Bard and RPI. 

Adams' Addition
Since scoring in double figures for the first time against RPI on Jan. 12, Mickey Adams has scored at least 11 points in eight games, most recently putting up 11 against RPI on Sunday.
 
Less Threes, Yes Please!
The Brewers have been efficient from long and have been successful at defending the perimeter. Vassar drains 34.4 percent of its threes, while holding its opponents to 31.5 percent shooting from beyond the arc, which is good for second lowest in the conference.
 
From The Stripe
In nine of their past 11 games, the Brewers have scored more from the charity stripe than their opponents.

Line 'Em Up
Vassar holds its opponents to 63.3 percent shooting from the foul line, which is good for second lowest in the Liberty League.

Glass Cleaners
Vassar holds the third best rebounding margin in the conference at 0.9. Only Skidmore (2.0) and St. Lawrence (1.4) have higher marks.

On The Mark
In 11 of their past 15 games, the Brewers have shot more efficiently from deep compared to their opponents.

Top 10
Two Brewers are within the Top 10 of the Liberty League's scoring list: Jesse Browne (seventh, 15.5) and Erikson Wasyl (10th, 15.1 points per game) earned the honors as Vassar's top two scorers. Browne and Wasyl are also seventh and ninth in the conference with respective 44.4 and 43.0 field-goal percentages.

Sharpshooters
Jesse Browne and Erikson Wasyl shoot 41.4 and 40.2 percent from deep for third and fourth best in the conference, respectively.

Iron Men
Two Brewers have been earning valuable minutes to lead the Liberty League. Erikson Wasyl ranks first with 36.0 minutes per game, while Jesse Browne is third with 35.4.

Durable Defense
Freshman Paul Grinde has been holding it down for the Brewers on the defensive end. The center's 7.4 rebounds and one block per game are good for fourth and fifth best in the conference, respectively.

Get it, Grinde
The Brewers have 53 blocks under their belt, and 43.4 percent of them are thanks to freshmen Paul Grinde.
 
History Made
Paul Grinde made history Jan. 16 when he pulled down the most rebounds in program history. The freshman grabbed 18 boards against Union College to surpass Alex Snyder, who collected 17 against RIT on Feb. 9, 2013.

Up Next
The Vassar men's basketball team hopes to continue playing in the postseason, which continues Saturday, Feb. 27.