GENEVA, N.Y.—The Hobart College basketball team earned its third straight win, defeating Liberty League rival Clarkson University 87-83 in Bristol Gymnasium tonight. The Statesmen led by as many as 17 before fending off a late charge by the visiting Golden Knights.
 
Hobart (9-7, 5-4) put three players in double figures led by senior Jackson Meshanic, who flirted with a triple-double. He produced game highs of 24 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists. Classmate Patrick Walker added 18 points, six boards and a pair of blocked shots. Both Meshanic and Walker were 9-of-12 shooting from the floor. Sophomore Pat Healy gave the Statesmen 16 points off the bench, canning a game-high three 3-pointers.
 
Clarkson (5-10, 2-6) also had three players reached double digits. Senior Blake Gearhart scored 23 points to go with a team-high five assists. Senior Ryan Miles Ferguson logged 18 points and junior Garret Delaney finished with 10 points.
 
KEY STATS

• Hobart's ability to get to the free throw line, provided the Statesmen with a boost. Despite shooting 55.9% at the line, the Statesmen made more free throws (19) than Clarkson attempted (14).
• Hobart continued to control the glass, outrebounding CU 37-29. The Statesmen have grabbed more caroms than the opposition in 14 of their 16 games this season.

 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• Hobart scored the first eight points of the game and never trailed.
• With about eight minutes left in the first half, Golden Knights first-year Aydin Kocak made a 3-pointer to trim the Statesmen lead to 22-18. Junior Isaiah Washington countered with a triple at the other end of the floor, sparking a 10-0 run by Hobart. Sophomore Aidan Rodgers' 3-pointer at 3:31 capped the run and gave the home team a 32-18 lead.
• The Statesmen went into halftime with a 42-29 lead.
• A 12-2 Hobart run early in the second half gave the home side its biggest lead of the game, 59-42. Jackson Meshanic led the charge with seven points during the three-minute surge.
• The Golden Knights didn't let the Statesmen get the win without a fight. With under five minutes left, CU trimmed Hobart's lead to single digits.
• Twice in the final minute, Clarkson made it a 3-point game, but each time a Statesmen made clutch free throws. With 27 seconds left, sophomore Carter Meshanic (9pts) made a pair of shots from the charity stripe to give Hobart a five-point edge.
• Sophomore Jack Delgety hit a 3-pointer with 17 seconds to go, to make it 86-83 with nine ticks remaining, but Clarkson was forced to foul Jackson Meshanic who made 1-of-2 at the line to complete the night's scoring.

 
COACH'S CORNER


UP NEXT

• Hobart will be back in action at 4 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 21, when the Statesmen welcome St. Lawrence University to Bristol Gym. The Saints improved to 9-5 overall (5-3 LL) with a 69-64 win at RIT tonight.