Potsdam, NY – Five players finished in double figures as a balanced scoring attack led the Clarkson University Men’s Basketball team to an 80-63 victory over crosstown rival Potsdam State Tuesday night at Alumni Gymnasium.

The Golden Knights improved to 3-1 on the season and will play at Elmira College this weekend. Potsdam saw its record evened at 2-2.

The Bears started off the opening period by limiting Clarkson’s second chances and getting many of the loose balls while forcing Clarkson into some tough spots. The half was highlighted by an alley-oop dunk to Tony Efese, but shortly after Clarkson enjoyed a lengthy run. Trailing 26-22 at 4:57, Potsdam would not score again for the remainder of the half, while the Knights’ Jerry Coleman (Potsdam, NY) went on an individual 3-point barrage. The run started on a layup from Nate Uline (Gansevoort, NY) at the 4:10 mark, and Coleman than buried three straight 3-pointers, including two from the corner. The half was capped off on a nifty pass from Marques Charlton (Deer Park, NY) when he found Christian Collette (Yalesville, CT) underneath for a lay in.

Coleman led all scorers with nine points and Charlton tossed in seven points to go along with four rebounds and three assists for Clarkson. Efese led the Bears with eight points and four boards. Clarkson shot 16-for-29 (55.2%) while the Bears started strong but struggled to finish at 35.5 percent (11-for-31).

In the second half, Clarkson held a double-digit lead in the early going, but Potsdam crawled back to within seven points midway through the period. However, a three-point play from Nate Uline on a lay in and a free throw pushed Clarkson’s advantage back to 12 points, 66-54, and the next possession saw Felix Llanos (Queens, NY) make a 3-pointer with the shot clock nearly expired, allowing Clarkson to cruise for the remainder of the game.

Llanos led Clarkson’s five in double figures with 16 points, shooting 7-for-13 from the floor. Nate Uline, though in foul trouble for most of the game, added 14 points on 6-for-7 shooting, while Marques Charlton came through with 13 points (6-for-9 shooting), eight rebounds, and five assists. Jerry Coleman came through with 13 points, while John Coleman (Potsdam, NY) contributed seven assists. Christian Collette also scored 10 points, making four of his five attempts from the floor.

For Potsdam, Rob Duquette scored a game-best 20 points, shooting 9-for-18 from the floor. Curtis Pearce nearly added a double-double with 10 points and nine rebounds, and Tony Efese scored 12 points. The Bears shot 50 percent in the second half, but didn’t help themselves at the free throw line, going 11-for-24 overall in the contest.