Box Score
GENEVA, N.Y. - Senior
Ricky Philatre (Randolph, MA/Randolph) scored 16 points and hauled in 14 rebounds to lead the Rensselaer men's basketball team to a 66-64, overtime victory over Hobart, in Liberty League action. With the win, the Engineers improve to 11-4 overall and 3-2 in the Liberty League, while the Statesmen fall to 9-7 (2-3 Liberty).
The visitors engineered their victory on the strength of a 7-2 advantage in second chance points in overtime and an untimely cold spell at the free throw line by the Statesmen. Hobart missed just three of its 20 free throws in regulation, but went 2-for-6 in OT.
The extra session got off to an ominous start, when Philatre gave the visitors the lead with a traditional three-point play. The Engineers never relinquished the lead. In a 64 second span that began at the 2:17 mark, Hobart missed four free throws that could have erased RPI's two-point advantage (65-63). Sophomore forward Matt Pebole (Red Hook/Little Silver, N.J.) broke the streak by making the second of two freebies, completing his 17-point, four-rebound, two blocked shot performance.
The Engineers restored their two-point edge when junior guard
Travis Jones (Columbia/E. Greenbush, N.Y.) made the backend of a two-shot foul with seven seconds remaining. The Statesmen got two looks at the basket down the stretch, but both shots were off the mark.
In the first half, Hobart broke a 17-all tie with nine unanswered points, including seven from Pebole, to build the largest lead of the game for either squad, 26-17 with 8:52 left. Rensselaer chipped away at its deficit down the stretch, heading into halftime down just one, 33-32. Pebole scored 12 of his game-high 17 points in the first 20 minutes, while Llewellyn chipped in 10 of his 14 points.
The Statesmen remained in the lead deep into the second half. Llewellyn made a pair of free throws with 5:44 left in regulation to put Hobart in front 53-47. Senior forward
Tim Rupp (Curtis/Staten Island, N.Y.) keyed a 7-0 run with five of his 11 points, putting RPI ahead 54-53 with 3:41 to go. First-year guard Stefan Thompson's (CBA/Syracuse, N.Y.) three-point play at 3:30 return the Statesmen to the lead, 56-54, but the Engineers sank back-to-back jumpers by Philatre and junior guard
DJ Blakemore (Lahser/Bloomfield Township, Mich.) go up two with 1:53 left.
Thompson tied the game for the fifth and final time by sinking a pair of free throws with 42 seconds left. RPI missed a three with seven seconds to go and Thompson got the rebound. He made a mad dash up the court and got off a layup in traffic that went halfway down the cylinder before rattling out, forcing overtime.
