ITHACA, N.Y. – Powered by a last-second tip-in at the buzzer by senior guard Ethan Ellis, Vassar College posted a 75-73 victory over Ithaca College in Liberty League men's basketball action on Friday evening. It was the league opener for both squads as the Brewers move to 4-1 overall, while the Bombers are now 3-3 on the young season.

Locked in a 73-73 tie with 19 seconds remaining following a tying bucket from Ithaca's Luka Radovich, the Brewers and the Bombers came out of a timeout for the final play. Taking possession, Vassar senior guard Jack Rothenberg went up for a shot, but his attempt bounced out. Just before time expired, Ellis was there, tipping-in the shot to give the Brewers the buzzer beater victory.

The Brewers owned a 38-36 advantage at halftime, but a trey from Logan Wendell at the 17:52 mark, followed by a pair of free throw makes seconds later turned a Bombers deficit into a 43-42 advantage with 17:10 to play. Rothenberg tipped the advantage back in the Brewers favor with a quick layup, but another Wendell three made it an Ithaca lead (46-44) once more.

A back-and-forth scoring battle kept things tight over the next couple of minutes, but the Bombers used a 6-0 run, including the go-ahead bucket from Andrew Geschickter at 10:10 to make it a 55-54 lead for the home team.

Geschickter drain a free throw at 8:33, giving the Bombers a solid five-point edge (60-55), but the Brewers mounted a comeback as a three from senior guard Kevin McAuliffe tied things at 60-60 with 6:58 left on the clock.

Ithaca made it a 64-62 lead at 4:58 as Zach Warech dropped in a free throw, but Rothenberg took advantage at the line, draining both of his free throws to tie the game (64-64). The Bombers battled back once more, but Ellis tied things yet again, draining his free throws for the 69-all margin at 2:53.

Ithaca answered immediately as Wendell dropped in a layup, but foul trouble plagued the Bombers once more as a foul on the home team sent Vassar senior captain Avni Mustafaj to the line as he hit both for the 71-71 tie with 2:22 to play.

Turnovers caused trouble for both squads late, but back-to-back giveaways by the Bombers led to possession for the Brewers as they took advantage behind a go-ahead jumper from Luke Adams to grab the 73-31 lead at 1:44 forcing Ithaca into a timeout.

Following a potential costly turnover, the Bombers regained possession as Wendell took it to the hoop. His layup missed, but Radovich was there to drive it home, tying the contest at 73-all with 19 seconds to play and set up the dramatic finish.

Rothenberg led the Brewers in scoring with 21 points, going 6-of-12 from the floor and 9-of-10 from the free throw line. He also added nine rebounds with two assists. Mustafaj added a double-double of 18 points and 10 rebounds, notching an assist as well, while McAuliffe had 14 points with two boards and an assist. Junior forward Case Parsons posted a game-high two blocks.

For the Bombers, Radovich had a game-high 24 points with seven rebounds, an assist and a block. Wendell had 14 points with two boards, while Geschickter added 11 points and three rebounds with two assists. Liam Spellman led all players in the game with two steals on the night.

Vassar returns to action on Saturday, traveling to Geneva, N.Y., for a 4pm match against Hobart College.