The St. Lawrence University men's basketball team found success against No. 5 seed Ithaca in the opening round of the Liberty League playoffs, proving that the third time is indeed a charm.
 
After dropping two closely contested regular-season matchups to the Bombers, the Saints capitalized on their home-court advantage in a win-or-go-home setting, winning 72-64 to advance to the semifinal for the fourth consecutive season.
 
St. Lawrence now prepares for a showdown with No. 1 seed Rensselaer in Troy – a team the Saints nearly upset on the road earlier this season.
 
"I thought our team played with a nice mix of poise, toughness, and intelligence," said Saints head coach Chris Downs. "That may have been our best-executed game of the year, and it couldn't have come at a more opportune time. Now we prepare for our semifinal matchup on the road this weekend. Everything we want is right in front of us."
 
The Saints seized control early and never relinquished the lead. Adam Dudzinski anchored the effort with a dominant near double-double, scoring a game-high 28 points and pulling down nine rebounds.
 
The scoring opened with a layup by Tommy McMahon, followed quickly by baskets from Dan Anderson and Jlin Brown to jump out to a 6-0 lead, forcing an early Ithaca timeout. Dudzinski then drained a three-pointer to push the margin into double figures.
 
While Ithaca found some rhythm from beyond the arc, sinking five triples to the Saints' four in the first half, they could only manage to trim the deficit to four. St. Lawrence headed into the locker room with a 35-31 lead.


 
Any momentum Ithaca hoped to carry into the second half was silenced immediately when Dudzinski opened the period with a three-pointer. From that point on, the Bombers never got within six points again. Consistent execution at the free-throw line down the stretch by Aidan Phalen, Anderson, and Dudzinski iced the game for the Scarlet and Brown.
 
St. Lawrence travels to Troy, NY, to face RPI on Friday, February 27. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. The winner advances to the Liberty League championship game; where an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament will be on the line.