POUGHKEEPSIE, N.Y. - The history between Bard and Vassar in men's basketball was rewritten beginning in 2011, when Bard joined the Liberty League. The neighboring schools have split 10 games over the last five years, producing an averaging scoring differential of 6.6 points per game.
So it wasn't that surprising when Bard rallied from a 13-point halftime deficit to trail by just one, 61-60, with 3:59 left, in the 11th league battle on Tuesday night.
This one didn't end well for Bard, though. Vassar held the Raptors to just one point from there and came away with a 69-61 victory to snap a six-game losing streak and extend Bard's to seven.
Vassar (5-8, 1-4 Liberty League) took charge in the first half, shooting 51 percent on a flurry of back-door cuts and layups, making the most of 11 Bard turnovers. The lead got as big as 15 at one point, but it was 39-26 at halftime.
The Raptors (2-10, 0-3) scored the first six points of the second half, and Vassar's lead fluctuated between 6-10 from there as the clock wound down under 10 minutes.
It was 61-53 with 6:55 to go when Bard put together a 7-0 run to trim to the lead to one. It culminated with a layup off a nice feed inside from
Christopher Rogers to
Armando Dunn. But the Raptors were done. Bard went 0-for-6 from the field with two turnovers in the final 3:59.
Alex Seff (Arlington, VA) was a problem for Bard all night, finishing with 17 points and nine rebounds. Mason Dyslin (Yorktown Heights, NY) added 13 points and five boards, and Mickey Adams (Boston, MA) added 10 points in 17 minutes off the bench. The Brewers shot 52 percent for the game and made half their three-pointers (8-for-16).
Harry Johnson led Bard with 14 points, and Dunn finished with 13 points and seven rebounds. Rogers, a freshman, chipped in with nine points and seven boards, while classmate
Emmanuel Oyakhilome provided a second-half spark with eight points and three rebounds in just seven minutes.
A pair of tough Liberty League contests await Bard this weekend. The Raptors will host St. Lawrence and Clarkson on Friday and Saturday, respectively. Follow both games via Live Stats or Live Video right here.
