GENEVA, N.Y.—The Hobart College basketball team had four players in double figures in their Liberty League showdown against Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute this afternoon, but a late scoring drought proved costly as the Engineers left Bristol Gym with a 65-53 win.
 
Hobart first-year Daniel Cooke produced 12 points and six rebounds. Senior Edens Fleurizard and sophomore Jackson Meshanic both added 11 points and seven rebounds. Senior Tucker Lescoe contributed 10 points. Sophomore Dan Masino chipped in seven points, seven rebounds and a team-high three assists. The Statesmen (12-3, 6-2) outrebounded Rensselaer 36-31, but the home team committed twice as many turnovers (16-8), an advantage the Engineers turned into a 21-10 scoring edge in points off turnovers.
 
Junior Patrick Mahoney led all scorers, finishing with 20 points. Sophomore Dom Black notched 15 points and a game-high nine rebounds. First-year Jonny Angbazo contributed nine points off the bench.
 
Over the last nine minutes of the game, RPI (12-2, 7-0) outscored Hobart 16-5, including a scoreless stretch that dragged on for nearly six minutes. With about nine and a half minutes to go, Tucker Lescoe made a jumper to pull the Statesmen within one, 49-48.
 
Then the shots stopped falling for Hobart. The Statesmen went 0-for-5 from the floor and committed three turnovers before Lescoe made a free throw to halt the scoreless run. On the other side of the ledger, Black scored five of RPI's next nine points, to stretch the lead to 58-48. Hobart trailed by no less than seven for the rest of the game.
 
Until that fateful stretch, the game was very much what one would expect from two of the league's front runners. The lead swung back-and-forth nine times with six ties. Throughout the first half, neither team led by more than five and they went into the locker room at the break tied at 29.
 

At the half, @HobartHoops & RPI are tied at 29. @MeshanicJackson leads the Statesmen with 9 pts.#GoStatesmen | #d3hoops | #d3h pic.twitter.com/DgyVxzhINp

— HWS Athletics (@HWSAthletics) January 18, 2020

 
Hobart had a 37-36 lead five minutes into the second half, but RPI ripped off eight straight points to build a seven-point advantage. Black led that charge as well, sinking a pair of 3-pointers.
 
The Statesmen will head to the North Country for their next contest, visiting Clarkson (4-10, 2-5) on Jan. 24 and St. Lawrence (4-9, 2-5) on Jan. 25. RPI, which has won 12 in a row, will return home to host Bard (0-13, 0-7) on Jan. 21.