Potsdam, NY – Will Coston scored 17 points in 23 minutes as Cortland State’s defense held the Clarkson University Men’s Basketball team was held to its lowest point total of the season in a 67-44 loss to the Red Dragons on Friday night at Alumni Gymnasium.

The Golden Knights fell to 2-6 overall and return to action on Monday and Tuesday in the Big Apple at Lehman College and New York University. The Red Dragons improved to 7-2.

Cortland’s bulk and athleticism proved to be a tough match up for the Knights in the early going as the Red Dragons quickly built a 12-0 lead before Clarkson finally got on the scoreboard six minutes into the contest. Clarkson rallied back to pull within four after a pair of free throws from Elson Pickering (Brooklyn, NY) with 5:53 left in the half, but the Red Dragons shut the Knights’ offense down in the final six minutes and went on a 19-3 run to close the first 20 minutes.

Clarkson struggled to shoot just 7-for-27 from the field in the first half, while the Red Dragons fired at 50 percent, going 17-for-34. Cortland also held a 23-14 edge on the boards. Will Coston led Cortland with 14 points and Mike Lewis added 13 points and 6 rebounds. Pickering and Brian Salanger (Syracuse, NY) each contributed six points for Clarkson in the first half.

The second half didn’t prove to be any different as Clarkson couldn’t cut the deficit to any fewer than 18 points, and saw the Cortland advantage spread to as many as 29 on a handful of occasions late in the game before finally settling on a 23-point margin.

Along with Coston’s 17 points, Mike Lewis added 15 points and 7 rebounds. The Red Dragons enjoyed a balanced scoring attack outside of the two players in double-digits as eight others recorded at least one field goal.

Pickering led the Knights with 12 points, 7 rebounds, and 6 blocks. Salanger also added in 9 points.