Hoop Time Online

HC gets A. May-zing OT win

2008-01-06T08:59:00.000-05:00

(Originally posted 8:46 p.m., links added at 8:59 a.m.)
Adam May scored 9 of his 12 points in overtime to lift Holy Cross to a come-from-ahead, come-from-behind 67-63 win Saturday at San Francisco.

It was 33-8, Holy Cross, at the intermission after a first half where the Crusaders shot and held San Francisco to 4 for 28 from the field (14.3 percent). The second half, though, was a turnaround. The 'Saders cooled to 6 for 16 (37.5 percent) while the Dons hit 16 of 28 (57.1 percent)m including 5 of 7 from three-point range.

Two of those threes came off the hand of Manny Quezada in the last two minutes, erasing a 6-point HC lead and sending the game to OT.

San Francisco scored the first six points in the OT, then May got it going. May scored 5 in an 8-0 HC run. Then, when the Dons tied it, he hit a jumper to give HC the lead for good. Just to make sure his efforts were not for naught, May scored the final points of the game by going coast-to-coast after a late steal.

The Crusaders played without starting power forward Alex Vander Baan. HC radio attributed his absence to back spasms. Point guard Pat Doherty also left early with what was reported on radio to be an ankle injury.

Colin Cunningham was also injured late in the game. Doherty came in long enough to shoot free throws (missing both) for Cunningham, who was injured while being fouled. Cunningham's injury did not seem serious. He returned later.

Tim Clifford led HC with 17 points. Doherty had 16 when he went down.

Holy Cross is at Maryland Tuesday in its final non-conference tune-up before opening league play Saturday at Lafayette
Box score | Sacramento Bee | SF Chronicle | Telegram & Gazette

Bison lose in final prep

2008-01-06T08:57:00.000-05:00

(Originally posted 8:22 p.m., links added at 8:57 a.m.)
In an ideal world for Bucknell, the game at St. Bonaventure would have served as an ideal tune-up for Patriot League play, finish off a softer opponent after a steady diet of tough to chew tests over the holidays. Instead, the Bison got a tough 65-62 loss and a two-game losing streak.

Like most of the season so far, though, things did not work out the way the Bison (5-0) planned them. Instead of a confidence building win to set the tone into league play, the Bison were dealt a tough-to-swallow close loss in a game they led by eight with 6:30 to play.

The key swing came when a Jason Vegotsky three was waved off for a moving screen call. At the time, Bucknell was up 55-49. It could have been a 9-point lead, with about six minutes to go. Instead, it was a lead that evaporated in a hurry when a St. Bonnie offensive rebound at the other end led to a D'Lancy Carter three-point play that ignited a 10-0 Bonnies run.

There were five lead changes in the final four minutes, the last coming with 19 seconds left, when Michael Lee's layup-and-one made it 64=62, St. Bonaventure. Lee added a free throw with 12 seconds to go, but missed one of two to leave the door open.

John Griffin, who was 0 for 6 from the arc, 0 for 7 for the game, missed a contested, would-be-tying three with 2 seconds left. Griffin also missed an open three on BU's next-to-last possession.

Justin Castleberry led Bucknell with a career-high 22 points. Stephen Tyree also had a career-high 10.
Box score | Daily Item | Buffalo News

Road catches up to Lafayette

2008-01-06T08:55:00.000-05:00

(Originally posted 7:46 p.m., links added at 8:55 a.m.)
The road warriors from Lafayette finally hit the wall Saturday in Jackson, Miss., losing 77-53 to Misssissippi State.

It was Lafayette's seventh game of an eight-game road swing that started promisingly with three wins in the first four games. The loss was the third straight since breaking briefly at Christmas with a three-game win streak and an 8-3 record.

Three of the four losses on the road trip have been to major conference sides -- Rutgers and Pitt of the Big East and Miss. State, which plays in the Southeast Conference. This was the first time on this road swing, which ends Wednesday at Princeton, that the Leopards got blown out. It was also the first time their shooting touch abandoned them en mass.

Lafayette shot a season-low 28.1 percent (9-32) in the first half, then rewrote the season superlatives list with an even icier 10 for 40, 25 percent in the second half. Needless to say, the 26.6 percent total was the worst shooting night all season for Lafayette.

The Easton Bombers were held to 6 three-pointers on 25 attempts. The 6 makes and 24 percent shooting from the arc were also season lows for Lafayette. Andrew Brown, the team's top scorer and best three-point shooter, was 1 for 7 from three. Matt Betley, who MSU obviously saw drain six against Pitt, only got two chances. He made one.

Bilal Abdullah, who led Lafayette with 21 points, hit 4 of 9 from the arc. No other Leopard connected. It was the first time since the season opener against Wagner that the 'Pards hit less than 10 threes.

Unlike the Pitt game, whwere Lafayette led at the half, this one got out of control early. Missississippi State led by as many as 20 in the first half and took a 37-25 lead to the break.

Lafayette made a run early in the second half, pulling within 4 on an Abdullah three with 15:36 to go. But MSU responded with a 10-0 run, then pulled away.
Box score | NE Miss. Daily Journal | Clarion-Ledger (sidebar) | Jackson Clarion-Ledger (gamer) | Commercial Dispatch | Dawgs Bite

Navy uses 2nd half run to down Longwood

2008-01-06T08:41:00.000-05:00

The Mids and Longwood were even at intermission. Then the Mids got busy and blew out the visitors from Farmville.

After a 24.1 percent (7-29) first half from the field that included just 2 threes on 11 tries, the Midshipmen found themselves tied at 23-23 when the first half ended. When the second half started, it was a different story.

The Mids, who broke the game open early in the half with a 21-4 run, were even-Steven 50 percent shooters after the break, hitting 14 of 28 from the field, 5 of 10 from Chick and Ruth's.

Greg Sprink finished with his first double-double of the season -- 21 points and 11 boards. Kaleo Kina added 18 and Chris Harris added 18 and dished out 5 assists without turning the ball over.
Box score | Examiner

Brown delivers for Army again

2008-01-06T08:21:00.000-05:00

Jarrell Brown scored 18 of his 23 points in the second half of the Black Knight's 70-66 win Saturday over visiting Portland.

Army (7-6) led by five at the half, but saw Portland make enough of a run to take the lead briefly in the second half. Then Brown hit a three with 9:17 to play to spark what proved to be a decisive 12-3 Army run.

The Black Knights were up at least two possessions most of the rest of the way, though 6 of 10 free throw shooting in the final minute opened the door enough to cause a little anxiety for the 714 folks in Christl Arena.

Brown, who reached 20 for the ninth time this season and second game in a row, was 5 for 7 from the field, 4 for 5 from three-point range. Not bad for a guy who didn't take part in the two practices leading up to this game due to a sore foot. It was Brown's 10th straight double figures showing.
Box score | Postgame quotes | Times Herald-Record | Oregonian

Saturday readaround

2008-01-05T06:16:00.000-05:00

No sense spending time on previews when we don't know if they will show up on the site before the games are played. Better to spend that time trying to find a solution to the ongoing problems with the Blogger publishing platform.

In the meantime, here are some readaround links, with a decided purple tint:

The storyline for the Holy Cross at San Francisco game is former Oklahoma State coach Eddie Sutton, who took over as the Dons interim coach Dec. 26:

No scolds barred as Sutton readies USF for his Hilltop debut (SF Chronicle)

Meanwhile, looking ahead . . . Who'd a thunk we'd ever think see the day the Washington Post's Maryland writer would refer to a Patriot League team coming to visit as "a difficult home game" --

With ACC Play Looming, All of the Terps' Games Count (Washington Post)

Dons' Sutton (raspy) voice of doom (Contra Costa Times)

Sutton's task at USF his biggest challenge yet (San Jose Mercury-News)

Looking back, Ralph Willard recaps the Crusaders recent losses in his most recent post

CoachRalphWillard.com

Despite those losses, Stephen Miller of the Morning Call is still high on the 'Saders' future:

Crusaders are team to beat in Patriot League (Morning Call)

Meanwhile down in the Valley:

Brett Reed Q&A (Morning Call)

Lehigh's lone senior is leader by example (Express-Times)

Want more Brett Reed? Subscribe to Lehigh's Brett Reed Report podcasts.

Latest Brett Reed Report podcast (You will need iTunes. Get it free here)

American falls at Brown

2008-01-04T21:31:00.000-05:00

Free throws proved to be the difference in the Eagles' 68-55 loss Friday night in Providence.

American fell behind by 14 points early and never got closer than 6 after that, falling back to .500 (7-7) with the loss. The win, Brown's second this week against a Patriot League team, gives the Bears an 8-5 mark.

American didn't shoot well -- 21 of 54 (38.9 percent) from the floor, 8 for 22 on threes -- but that would have been enough to win had Brown not gone to the free throw line 17 times more than the Eagles.

Like AU, Brown hit 21 field goals. The Bears had a better percentage (21-50, 42 percent), but only 6 were treys (on 19 attempts). But American was whistled for 22 personals in the game, sending Brown to the line 26 times. The Bears made 20. AU was 5 of 9 at the foul line.

Travis Lay led AU with 12 points. Derrick Mercer added 11 and Brian Gilmore 10.

Brown's Army killer Damon Huffman led all scorers with 29
Box score | Providence Journal

Technical difficulties update

2008-01-03T09:14:00.000-05:00

We continue to experience technical problems with our publishing system. Our apologies for the incovenience.

We thought the problem was resolved when items posted on Dec. 30 mysteriously showed up a few days later. But this morning's attempt at an update encountered the same problems.

if you are reading this, it means the items finally did publish. It does not mean we have solved the problem with the Blogger tool we use to publish Hoop Time.

From what we can gather from the support forums, we are not the only site having this problem. We also are not the only site frustrated by the lack of any communications from Blogger's support staff.

We are exploring alternate publishing systems, with a goal of having things completely resolved, one way or another, in time for the start of conference play.

In the meantime, we will continue to post updates, but we cannot predict when they will actually show up on the site.

Last 21 seconds doom Army

2008-01-03T09:03:00.000-05:00

The Black Knights held a 4-point lead with 21 seconds to play, but Brown's Damon Huffman scored the last five points of the game to give the Bears a 79-78 win at West Point.

Army led 79-75 after Kenny Brewer hit both ends of a one-and-one with 21 seconds to go.

Huffman cut it to one when he converted an old-fashioned three-point play after being fouled while making a layup with 15 seconds to play.

Brown then fouled Army's Marcus Nelson, who missed the front end of his one and one, setting the stage for Huffman's game winner with 1.7 seconds to play.

Army's Jarrell Brown led all scorers with 32 points, including 9 threes. Chris Walker was 6 for 6, with 14 points off the bench for the Black Knights.
Box score | Providence Journal |

Navy guns down NJIT

2008-01-03T08:50:00.000-05:00

The four guards in Navy's starting lineup combined for 70 of the Midshipmen's 84 points in an 84-55 pounding Wednesday of winless NJIT (0-16).

NJIT's Nesho Milosevic exposed Navy's inside weakness, with a 25-point, 10-rebound double double. Milosevic was 9 for 11 from the field. But the rest of his team was 13 for 44 (29.5 percent), which was no match for Navy's firepower.

Kaleo Kina led the Mids with 23 points. Greg Sprink added 19, Chris Harris (5 of 6 from the arc) had 18 and Romeo Garcia added 10. As a team, Navy shot 55.6 percent (30-54) from the field, 11 of 23 from three-point range.
Box score | AP

Colgate gets past Maine

2008-01-03T08:41:00.000-05:00

Kyle Roemer scored 17 points to lead the Raiders past the Black Bears 70-62.

The Raiders scored first and never trailed. to improve to 8-5 with its second win in a row The eight non-conference wins over Division I opponents are the most for a Colgate team since Adonal Foyle was a junior -- in high school (1992-93).

Tim Pounds (14 points) and Kendall Chones (11) also reached double figures for Colgate.
Box score | AP

Lafayette upset bid falls short

2008-01-03T08:23:00.000-05:00

Seeking to become the second Patriot League team in four seasons to deal nationally ranked Pittsburgh a home loss, Lafayette hit 17 three-pointers Wednesday night. It was not enough.

The Leopards' three-point shooting kept them in the game for a half. In fact, Lafayette was up 41-37 at the break. But as it turned out, Pitt was just getting warmed up with its 55.6 percent (15-27) first half shooting from the field. The Panthers shot a scorching 20 for 25 (80 percent) after the break to win by three touchdowns.

Lafayette finished 24 of 51 from the field (47.1 percent), just 7 of 20 inside the three-point arc. Matt Betley led the Leopards with 20 points, including a perfect 6 for 6 night from three-point range. Andrew Brown (11 points, 3 threes), Bilal Abdullah (14 points, 4 treys) and Paul Cummins (11 points, 3 treys) also reached double figures for Lafayette.
Box score | Post-Gazette | Tribune-Review

Lehigh comes up short

2008-01-03T08:09:00.000-05:00

Bryan White's career-high 23 points were not enough to get Lehigh past Columbia Wednesday night.

White was 9 of 14 from the field and also had 2 steals and a blocked shot. But cold shooting in the second half proved to be the Mountain Hawks downfall.

After leading 34-31 at the break, Lehigh shot just 10 for 30 (33.3 percent) from the field in the second half, 1 of 9 from the three-point arc.

The Lions took the lead midway through the second half with a 10-0 run, then pulled away in the final four minutes.

Columbia followed its 50-percent (13-26) first half with a 12 for 21 (57.1 percent) second half. The Lions shot just one free throw in the first half, but went 15 for 20 at the line in the second.
Box score | AP

'Saders back on track

2008-01-03T07:52:00.000-05:00

Holy Cross snapped its two-game losing streak with a 65-62 win Wednesday over Boston University.

Pat Doherty scored a career-high 20 points, including 4 key free throws in the final 15 seconds, to lead HC. The win was the Crusaders' 23rd straight in the Hart Center.

Tim Clifford added 16 points and 8 rebounds before fouling out with 15 seconds left. Colin Cunningham added 16, including 4 threes.

Holy Cross led 21-20 at the half, despite shooting just 6 for 20 (30 percent) in the opening 20 minutes. The Crusaders heated up after intermission, shooting 60.9 percent (14-23) in the second half to finish the game 20 of 43 (46.5 percent). HC was 7 for 16 from the arc, 18 of 24 from the charity stripe.

BU finished 19 for 45 from the field (42.2 percent), 11 of 24 from three-point range and 13 of 19 at the foul line.
Box score | Telegram & Gazette | Boston Herald

Good news, bad news for Bucknell

2008-01-03T07:08:00.000-05:00

The good news for Bucknell: Darren Mastropaolo returned to the floor Wednesday night. The bad news: the Bison still struggled to find the basket, losing 53-47 to visiting Ohio University.

Mastropaolo scored 6 points, going 2 for 3 from the field in 18 minutes. It was his first action this season after suffering a torn ACL playing pickup ball over the summer.

The rest of the team did not fare as well shooting the ball. How cold were they? Consider this: Bucknell's 9 second half field goals (on 25 tries, 36 percent) were more than 4 times as many as they made in the first half (2-17, 11.8 percent).

Despite the cold shooting from the field, Bucknell still managed to play to a 16-16 tie at the intermission, thanks to 10 for 12 shooting at the foul line and tough defense that held the Bobcats to 25 percent shooting from the field in the first half (6-24). Ohio was just 1 for 11 from the three-point arc in the half.

The Bison went on to build a 5-point lead in the second half and after surrendering that, came back to go ahead again, 40-39, on a Justin Castleberry layup with 6:34 to play.

Ohio took advantage of back-to-back Bison turnovers quickly push its lead back to 6, but Bucknell did not go away. Trailing 46-44 with 2:23 to play, Castleberry was fouled while taking a three. But the junior guard missed two of three, and at the other end, an Ohio offensive rebound led to a three-pointer by Bert Whittington IV, pushing the lead back to 4. Bucknell went 0 for 4 with a turnover on its next five trips up the floor and never got closer.

Castleberry (11 points) was the only player in double figures for the Bison, who finished 11 of 42 (26.2 percent) from the field, 6 of 19 from three-point range. Whittington's 20 off the bench led Ohio, which shot 57.1 percent (12-21) in the second half to finish 18 for 45 (40 percent) from the field. Whittington had 4 of OU's 5 threes (on 21 tries).
Box score | Daily Item

Technical difficulties

2007-12-31T10:16:00.000-05:00

We are experiencing technical difficulties. The site will be updated as soon as they are resolved. Sorry for the inconvenience.

Box score

Sacred Heart threes sink Holy Cross

2007-12-31T07:23:00.000-05:00

Both teams made 25 field goals, but Sacred Heart made 10 three-pointers to hand the Crusaders a 61-58 setback Sunday.

It was the second loss in as many games for Holy Cross (7-3), which shot the ball well, but allowed Sacred Heart (5-8) to do the same. Both teams were 25 for 48 (52.1 percent) from the field. Holy Cross had an edge at the foul line, hitting 5 of 9 free throws while the Pioneers shot just 2 foul shots and made only 1. But SH was 10 for 23 from the arc, while HC was 3 for 10 from long range.

Tim Clifford had 24 points for Holy Cross, and 7 rebounds, 6 on the offensive glass. The last of those caroms came after Colin Cunningham (10 points) missed a three that would have tied the game with 2 seconds to go.

Clifford got the ball to Adam May, but May's try from the arc was blocked, giving Sacred Heart its fifth win of the season.

Holy Cross held a 27-20 edge on the boards, and had 12 offensive rebounds to 9 for Sacred Heart. But one of those nine proved to be the key down the stretch for Sacred Heart.

After Holy Cross cut the Pioneers' lead to 59-58 on a Cunningham layup with 1:27 to go, the Crusaders got the stop they needed when Chauncey Hardy missed a jumper with 57 seconds left. But SH's Brice Brooks came up with the offensive board, leading to a Drew Shubik bucket with 21 seconds to play that forced HC to go for a three on its last possession.

The Crusaders trailed by as many as 9 in the first half before battling back to take a 29-28 lead at the intermission. HC led by as many as 6 early in the second half, and was still up 49-46 with 8:28 to go when SH went on an 8-1 run to take the lead for good. The game featured five ties and four lead changes, with neither team ever managing to push its advantage to double digits.

The win was Sacred Heart's fifth in its last seven games after an 0-6 start.
Box score | AP | Telegram & Gazette | Connecticut Post

Colgate squeaks by New Hampshire

2007-12-31T07:09:00.000-05:00

For the second game in a row, the Radiers were held under 50 points. This time, though, they managed to score just enough to get the win.

If you look at the box score, you'd have a tough time believing it was close. On the scoreboard, though, Colgate escaped with a 49-46 win after the Wildcats missed two three-pointers in the final 1:03 that could have sent the game to overtime.

Particularly quirky from a statistical viewpoint was the first half, which ended with UNH up 27-24 despite the Raiders holding them to 26.7 percent (8-30) shooting from the field. Colgate didn't exactly shoot the lights out in the half, but it did shoot 39.1 percent (9-23) from the field.

The difference was 5 UNH three-pointers (on 10 attempts) to 3 for Colgate (11 tries) and UNH's 6 for 8 showing at the foul line. Colgate was 3 for 8 on first half free throws.

In front of a Colgate-esque crowd of 703, the Raiders finished 19 of 42 (45.2 percent) from the field, 4 for 16 at the arc and just 7 of 15 at the foul line. New Hampshire shot 25.9 percent from the field (14-54), 7 of 23 from three-point range and 11 of 15 at the charity stripe.

Alex Woodhouse was the only Colgate player in double figures. The springy 6-8 junior scored a career-high 17 points and pulled down 9 rebounds. Woodhouse was 7 for 7 from the field and 3 for 5 at the foul line. His free throw with 3:55 to play was Colgate's only point in the final 6:57, a stretch where they nearly saw a 10-point lead evaporate thanks to 0 for 6 shooting and 3 turnovers.

The turnovers were a problem all afternoon for the Raiders, who coughed the ball up 23 times.
Box score | AP | Portsmouth Herald News |

Second half costs Lafayette

2007-12-31T07:03:00.000-05:00

For 22 minutes, Lafayette was right there. Then Robert Morris got red-hot and shot down the Leopards hopes for a road win.

Lafayette led 35-34 at the intermission after holding RMU to 33.3 percent (13-39) shooting in the first half. And the Leopards were up by four, 43-39, with 18:02 left to play.

Then the Colonials went on a 10-0 run over the next four minutes and went on to an 88-76 win.

All those first half shots must have helped RMU get dialed in. After that 33.3 percent half, the Colonials shot the olights out in the second half, knocking down 20 of 28 (71.4 percent) from the field.

Andrew Brown hit six treys en route to a team-high 24 points for Lafayette. Bilal Abdullah added four more three-pointers and 16 points for the Leopards (8-4), who shot 42.1 percent (24-57) from the field.

RMU outrebounded the 'Pards 42-33 and forced 19 Lafayette turnovers.
Box score | Post-Gazette | Tribune-Review

Afternoon delights top 3-game slate

2007-12-30T10:57:00.000-05:00

A pair of afternoon games on today's three-game schedule, starting with Colgate at New Hampshire at 1 p.m. That game is followed by Holy Cross at Sacred Heart at 4 p.m. Lafayette closes the day with a 7 p.m. start at Robert Morris in the first of two games in the Pittsburgh area in four days for the Leopards, who will stay in western Pa. to meet Pitt Wednesday.

SCOUTING NEW HAMPSHIRE: Now in his third season at UNH, former Drexel and East Carolina head coach Bill Herrion is finding it tough to turn the Wildcats program around. Winners of 22 games total his first two seasons, New Hampshire is on a similar pace after losing its last six in a row, turning a 3-1 start into its current 3-7 mark.

The Wildcats are 2-3 at home, but have lost the last three in a row in Detrick Gymnasium.

that UNH has actually outscored its opponents this season, averaging 71.8 points per game while allowing 71.3, is a statistical oddity brought about by a 49-point win over Division III Suffolk and a tendency to play close in losses. Only one loss came by more than 11 points and four of the Wildcats' setbacks have been by six or less points.

Four players average in double figures -- 6-2 junior Tyrece Gibbs (13.5 ppg), 6-8 senior Mike Christensen (13.1 ppg), 6-1 junior Eric Gilchrese (11.8 ppg) and 6-1 freshman Alvin Abreu (11.8 ppg). Gibbs is the top three-point threat, averaging 2.5 per game and hitting at a 43.1 percent clip from the arc.
BONUS LINKS:

New Hampshire stats

Livestats

SCOUTING SACRED HEART: After an 0-6 start, the Pioneers have begun to come around, winning four of their last six, the two losses coming on the road to Providence and Boston College by a combined 10 points.

Drew Skukik, a 6-4 senior, leads Sacred Heart with 11.6 points and 6 rebounds per game. Brice Brooke, a 6-7 senior, averages 10.7 ppg.
BONUS LINKS:

Sacred Heart stats

Sacred Heart game notes

SCOUTING ROBERT MORRIS: The Colonials are 7-5 under first-year head coach Mike Rice, who came to RMU after serving as Jamie Dixon's top assistant at Pitt.

Tony Lee leads Robert Morris. The 6-0 senior guard is the team's top rebounder (7.3 rpg), top assists man (7.6 apg) and second-leading scorer (14.3 ppg.) He also teams with 6-8 sophomore Jeremy Chappell to give opposing offenses fits. Lee leads the Northeast Conference with 3.25 steals per game. Chappell is second with 2.9 per game. Chappell also scores a team-high 16.7 ppg.

A.J. Jackson, a 6-6 senior, is averaging 13.3 ppg.

Sophomore point guard Jimmy Langhurst is averaging 10.9 ppg and has hit 13 of 20 from the arc in the Colonials' last three games. Over the last seven games he has dished out 31 assists while turning the ball over just 10 times.

While Langhurst has been taking good care of the ball, others have struggled for RMU. The Colonials average 18.4 turnovers per game, which puts a damper on an offense that is shooting 47.1 percent from the field.

In RMU's five losses, opponents have averaged 26 points per game off RMU turnovers. In its seven wins, opponents have scored 17.4 points per game off Colonials' giveaways.
BONUS LINKS:

Robert Morris stats

Robert Morris game notes

The spotlight has a way of always finding RMU's Lee (Ppost-Gazette)

Duquesne, RMU prepare for quick returns (Tribune-Review)

Brown typifies Lafayette (Express-Times)

Bison grind out a win

2007-12-30T08:57:00.000-05:00

Bucknell's 61-57 win over Long Beach State in Saturday's consolation game at Cal's Golden Bear Classic was not pretty. But it was a win, and the way the Bison are struggling of late, that is all that really mattered.

After losing three of its last four coming in, Bison coach Pat Flannery shook up his starting lineup, benching sophomore Patrick Behan in favor of freshman G.W. Boon. Boon responded with a career-high 12 points, but the move hardly solved Bucknell's offensive woes.

The Bison (5-7) shot just 25.8 percent from the field in the first half (8-31) and finished the game 21 for 60 (35 percent). They had scoreless stretches of over five minutes in each half and jacked up 33 shots from the arc (making 11).

But they played good enough defense to pick up the W over the defending Big West champions. Despite the woeful first half shooting, the Bison managed to lead 23-16 at the intermission after holding the 49ers (3-8) to 5 field goals (on 24 attempts, 20.8 percent).

Long Beach shot much better in the second half, going 14 for 28 from the field, including 7 treys (on 12 tries). But Bucknell managed to hang on, thanks in part to junior center Josh Linthicum, who scored 6 of his 9 points in the final 2:38, including a pair of huge putbacks in the final 1:13.

Linthicum finished with 12 rebounds, helping the Bison to a 42-32 advantage on the boards.

John Griffin finished with 15 points to lead the Bison. Justin Castleberry added 12, including a pair of free throws with nine seconds to go that sealed the victory.
Box score | Sports Network | AP

Lightning doesn't strike twice for AU

2007-12-30T08:16:00.000-05:00

For about 11 minutes Saturday afternoon, it looked like American might pull off its second shocker against a D.C. area power team in a week.

Then Georgetown changed its defense and ran away from the Eagles for a 78-51 win.

AU led early, with Garrison Carr and Derrick Mercer combining to go 5 for 5 from the three-point arc to start the game. When Mercer hit his second, with 12:53 to go in the opening half, the Eagles were up 19-13.

Then Georgetown began switching on screens to take away those open looks and picked up its defensive intensity. After Cornelio Guibunda scored against his old teammates to give AU a 21-19 lead with 9:12 to go in the half, Georgetown went on a 10-0 run that, for all intents and purposes, determined the outcome of the game.

AU was 0 for 4 with 4 turnovers during that stretch. The turnovers would be a probolem the rest of the way for American, which turned the ball over 21 times, leading to 27 Georgetown points.

In case AU had any comeback dreams, the Hoyas put the game away with a 17-0 run in the second half. That run capped a 50-15 Georgetown spurt that stretched across both halves.

Mercer finished with 17 points, including 4 of 7 from the arc. Carr had 16, including 5 treys on 7 attempts. The rest of the Eagles went 1 for 9 on three-pointers. AU finished the game 18 for 47 (38.3 percent) from the field.

Georgetown hit 29 of 48 (60.4 percent) from the field, 8 of 16 from three-point territory. The Hoyas outscored AU 38-14 in the paint. Georgetown's bench accounted for 30 points; AU's reserves scored 7.
Box score | Wash. Post | Wash. Moonie | Sports Network | HoopsWorld | AP

Navy on a win streak

2007-12-30T07:56:00.000-05:00

Greg Sprink and Kaleo Kina combined to score 56 points, including nearly every key basket in Navy's 85-83 win Saturday at St. Francis (NY).

Had there been any kind of a crowd on hand in Brooklyn Heights, we might have tried for some sort of "Navy pair beats full house" headline. But only 278 hardy souls witnessed Sprink's 33-point performance.

It was the most points by a Midshipmen since Dec. 22, 2005, when Sprink put up 34 against Brown. The total was not the most impressive part of Sprink's performance. It wasn't his 11 buckets on 18 shots that made the difference as much as the timing of those makes, especially on three of his four three-pointers (on 9 tries).

Navy took tghe lead nine seconds into the game on a Kina three-pointer and never trailed. Four times St. Francis managed to pull even. Three of those four times, it was Sprink who answered to keep Navy on top.

The two times the Terriers tied the game in the second half, Sprink hit a three to put Navy back in the lead. The last time came after SF tied the game at 68-68 with 4:08 to play. That was when Sprink responded with not one, but two threes, back to back, followed by a layup for a one-man 8-0 run that kept the Mids ahead the rest of the way.

The assist on both those threes came from Kina, who finished with 6 dishes and 6 boards to go with his 23 points. Back in the starting lineup, Kina also had three steals in 38 minutes of action.

St. Francis closed to within 3 at 76-73 with a minute to play, but Navy held the Terriers off by hitting 9 of 10 free throws down the stretch. Sprink was 5 for 6 in that span, Kina 2 for 2.

The win, on the heels of last week's win at Maryland-Eastern Shore, gives Navy (5-8) back-to-back wins for the first time this season. With 0-13 New Jersey Institute of Technology (Jan. 2) and 2-12 Longwood (Jan. 5) both set to visit Annapolis next week, the Mids could be riding a four-game win streak when they open conference play Jan. 11 at Bucknell.
Box score | AP

Three games, all on the road, today

2007-12-29T09:15:00.000-05:00

Coming off last week's win at Maryland, American travels across town to take on No. 5 Georgetown this afternoon in the feature game of the day. Navy is also on the road, traveling to Saint Francis (NY) and Bucknell looks to salvage its trip to the West Coast when it faces Long Beach State in the consolation game of Cal's Golden Bear Classic.

SCOUTING GEORGETOWN: The No. 5 ranked Hoyas come into the game at 8-1 after suffering their first loss of the season at No. 2 Memphis. If you are looking for a one-word description of Georgetown, that word might be "balanced." Leading scorer Roy Hibbert, a 7-2 senior with an NBA future, leads the Hoyas in scoring, averaging 12 ppg. Sophomore DaJuan Summers (6-8) averages 11.8 ppg. They are the only Hoyas averaging in double figures, but three others are averaging 9.2 ppg or better.

Georgetown plays lockdown defense, as evidenced by opponents 35.9 percent shooting against the Hoyas. That number drops to 28.3 percent at the arc. Opponents are scoring 55.7 points per game, a number inflated by the 85 Memphis posted. Alabama (60) is the only other team to score above the 50s against the Hoyas.

On offense, G-town is efficient, scoring 73.8 ppg while shooting 51.4 percent as a team, 38.8 percent from three-point range. Hibbert tops the Georgetown shooters, connecting on 62.3 percent of his attempts. His 7 rebounds per game are one reason the Hoyas outrebound opponents by almost 7 boards. Hibbert also averages 2.2 rejections.
BONUS LINKS:

Georgetown stats

Georgetown game notes

Georgetown looks to bounce back against American (HoopsWorld)

Eagles Try to Put Game Faces Back on for Hoyas (Washington Post)

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2007/basketball/ncaa/wires/12/28/2060.ap.bkc.american.s.shockers.0790/ (SI.com)

SCOUTING ST. FRANCIS (NY): The word small can be used multiple ways in describing the Terriers. There is the small roster, with just one guy taller than 6-7, the small crowd expected for the game (SF has averaged 435 fans for its first four home games), and the small number of wins the 3-9 Terriers have managed thus far.

All three wins have come at home, where SF is 3-1, with victories over Hartford, Hofstra and Fairfield.

Robert Hines, a 6-5 senior, is the Terriers leading scorer (16.4 ppg). Jamaal Womackm a 5-8 senior, is also in double figures at 11.4 ppg. Neither is shooting 40 percent from the field, which helps explain Saint Francis' 28.3 percent shooting as a team.
BONUS LINKS:

St. Francis (NY) stats

SCOUTING LONG BEACH STATE: The defending Big West champions are 3-7 following Friday's 102-65 loss to Cal. The 49ers gave up 16 three-pointers in the loss.

Long Beach State is 0-6 away from home under first-year coach Dan Monson, who came to LBS after stints at Minnesota and Gonzaga.

Fresno State transfer Donovan Morris (6-3 junior) leads the 49ers in scoring (16 ppg) and rebounding 6.1 rpg). Junior Brian Freeman (9.1 ppg), a 6-10 juco transfer, is shooting 63 percent from the field and has three-point range (5-7).

BONUS LINKS:

Long Beach St. stats

Long Beach St. tournament notes

Record shooting night way too much for Long Beach State (S.F. Chronicle)

49ers go into Bear den for tourney (Long Beach Press-Enterprise)

Lehigh D's it up against Monmouth

2007-12-29T08:52:00.000-05:00

Defense was the key in Lehigh's 56-39 win Friday night over Monmouth.

Coming off a 20-day layoff for finals and the holidays, the Mountain Hawks (6-5) were solid, but hardly stellar on offense, going 20 for 45 (44.4 percent) from the field and turning the ball over 19 times.

The way they played D, it hardly mattered. Sure Monmouth (2-10) is the lowest scoring team in the Northeast Conference, but until Friday night, they had scored fewer than 53 points only once this season (a 76-33 loss at Notre Dame).

The Mountain Hawks held Monmouth to a 5 for 22 showing in the first half (1-2 from three-point range). Monmouth was barely better in the second (8-25), finishing 13 for 47 (27.7 percent) from the field, 4 of 21 from the arc. Monmouth didn't help itself at the free throw line, going 9 for 22 there. Lehigh also dominated the glass, outrebounding Monmouth 43-26.

The 39 points were the fewest Lehigh has allowed a Division I opponent since Feb. 8, 2004, when the Mountain Hawks Patriot League championship team scored a 66-38 win at Navy.

Marquis Hall led Lehigh with 12 points and 5 assists. Freshman Rob Keefer added 11. Bryan White keyed Lehigh's dominance on the boards with 13 rebounds, the last of which was the 500th of his career.

Box score | Morning Call | Asbury Park Press