Feb. 27, 2009

Center Valley, Pa. - Colgate, Lehigh and Army all go on the road Saturday to try to claim the No. 4 seed in the Patriot League Men's Basketball Tournament, and the home quarterfinal game that comes with it. The Raiders are at Navy, Lehigh goes to Holy Cross and Army visits Bucknell. First-place American is at Lafayette after locking up the No. 1 seed in the field.

Patriot League Men's Basketball Release - 2.27.09

Patriot League Notebook

Final Home Quarterfinal Game Up For Grabs Saturday

The top three seeds in the upcoming Patriot League Men's Basketball Tournament are set, but the fourth and final position to host a game in the quarterfinals on Wednesday is still in play going into Saturday's regular-season finales. Colgate, Lehigh and Army all have a chance to reaching the No. 4 seed, while Bucknell and Lafayette can get as high as No. 5. Saturday's Patriot League action includes American at Lafayette, Lehigh at Holy Cross, Colgate at Navy and Army at Bucknell.

The Raiders will clinch the No. 4 seed with a win unless Lehigh wins and Army loses. Colgate can also clinch the No. 4 seed with a loss if Lehigh and Army both lose. The Mountain Hawks can capture the No. 4 seed with a win as long either Colgate or Army loses. The Black Knights can reach the No. 4 seed with a win over Bucknell and losses by both Colgate and Lehigh.

American holds the No. 1 seed in the field for the second year in a row, followed by No. 2 Holy Cross and No. 3 Navy.

American Clinches No. 1 Seed in League Tournament

The American Eagles will defend the Patriot League men's basketball title on their home court. American made sure of its fate as the No. 1 seed in the League Tournament by scoring the final six points in the last 28 seconds of a 64-59 win at home against Navy on Wednesday. Holy Cross sealed the No. 2 position with a 60-58 victory at Colgate, while Navy will enter the Tournament as the No. 3 seed. The remaining spots are up for grabs, with Colgate, Lehigh and Army in a tie for fourth place after the Mountain Hawks fell at Bucknell, 72-51, and the Black Knights won at Lafayette, 79-55.

American sealed outright possession of first place in the Patriot League and home-court advantage throughout its competition in the League Tournament. The Eagles improved to 12-1 in the League with their ninth straight win. Holy Cross holds a 10-3 League mark to guarantee second place, followed by Navy at 7-6 to hold third. Colgate, Lehigh and Army are deadlocked in fourth place with 5-8 League records, with Bucknell and Lafayette tied for seventh at 4-9.

American Enters Exclusive Company in League Annals

By clinching the No. 1 seed in the Patriot League Tournament on Wednesday, American become the first team since Lafayette in 1998-00 to earn the top seed in consecutive seasons. The Leopards are the only program to earn three straight No. 1 seeds, with Colgate (1995-96) and Fordham (1990-91) the others to do it in consecutive years. American also guaranteed becoming the first team in League annals to finish alone in first place for two straight seasons. The Eagles will play as the No. 1 seed in the Tournament for the third time in eight years as a League member.

No. 1 Usually Ends Up No. 1

If history rings true, American has to like its chances as the No. 1 seed with home court throughout the Patriot League Tournament. The top seed has won 14 of the 18 League Tournaments, and has advanced to the title game every season. American continued that trend by winning the Championship as the No. 1 seed last year.

Tickets Available For Quarterfinal Contests

American, Holy Cross and Navy are set as hosts for the Patriot League quarterfinals on Wednesday, and tickets are already available for each contest. At American, tickets can be purchased at Bender Arena, by calling 202-885-TIXX or visiting aueagles.tix.com. Tickets for Holy Cross' contest are available at the Hart Center box office, while Navy has tickets for sale through navysports.com, at the Naval Academy Athletic Association ticket office by calling 1-800-US4-NAVY, and at the Ricketts Hall ticket window. American has now captured a top four seed in each of its eight Patriot League seasons, while Holy Cross has done so for seven of the past nine campaigns and Navy for the last two years. American will host the quarterfinals for the third year in a row, while Holy Cross hosts for the fourth time in the last five seasons and Navy for the second straight year.

2009 Patriot League Quarterfinals on All-Access

The 2009 Patriot League Men's Basketball Tournament tips off with the quarterfinals on Wednesday, and all of the action will be available through Patriot League All-Access. The package can be purchased for a $9.95 monthly fee for quarterfinal and semifinal action. The Patriot League Tournament will be played entirely at home sites, with the higher seed hosting each contest. American, Holy Cross and Navy are three of the hosts for quarterfinals on Wednesday, the semifinals are on March 8 and Patriot League Championship is on ESPN2 at 4:45 p.m. on March 13.

American Continues to Roll

American has established itself as one of the nation's top road teams this year, and now it can also add the title of one of the hottest teams in the country. The Eagles have won nine consecutive contests, tied for the fourth-longest streak nationally. American has a 10-6 road record, and is one of only six teams in the country with at least 10 road wins. American's 12-1 Patriot League mark is its best record in any conference since going 11-0 in the East Coast Conference in the 1980-81 season. With their recent hot stretch, the Eagles have moved up to the No. 17 position in the CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major top 25. The Eagles have limited their last seven opponents to under 60 points.

Doing It With Defense

American has reached first place through excellent defense, but the Eagles aren't the only Patriot League team among the national leaders in a defensive category. Six of the eight Patriot League teams are listed in at least one NCAA top 50 leaderboard for a defensive statistic, with American, Holy Cross and Lehigh all listed twice. The Eagles are in the top 10 nationally in scoring defense and rated in field goal defense. Holy Cross in the top 25 nationally in both rebounding margin and steals, while Lehigh is ranked in field goal and three-point percentage defense. Bucknell (16th) and Navy (26th) give the Patriot League three teams on the leaderboard for three-point field goal percentage defense. Army rounds out the top defensive leaders by placing 40th in the country in scoring defense.

Patriot League Trends

The 24 series that have been completed in Patriot League action have featured an almost equal number of splits (13) and sweeps (11)...Home teams are 33-19 in Patriot League games...No team is averaging more than 70 points in League contests...No player is averaging more than 16 per game in League action...The highest single-game mark for any player is 28 points, achieved by Navy's Chris Harris, American's Garrison Carr and Brian Gilmore, and Army's Cleveland Richard...Carr hit the mark twice, including Saturday vs. Holy Cross.

Exclusive Company For Patriot League Guards

Four of the five active 1,000-point scorers are also among the top assist men in Patriot League annals. Navy's Kaleo Kina, Lafayette's Andrew Brown, American's Derrick Mercer and Lehigh's Marquis Hall are all part of a group of only 14 players in Patriot League history to record at least 1,000 career points and 300 career assists. Kina has even more prestige to his numbers, as he is one of three Patriot Leaguers with at least 1,300 points, 400 rebounds, 300 assists and 150 steals in a career. Kina joins Lafayette's Brian Ehlers (1996-00) and Holy Cross' Kevin Hamilton (2002-06) as players to accomplish the statistical feat.

This and That

Bucknell leads all teams in the country with six overtime games this year, holding a 2-4 record...The Bison represented the Patriot League in the ESPNU BracketBusters event for the fourth year in a row on Saturday, falling to Delaware, 81-68...Lehigh junior guard Marquis Hall is on the nominee list for the Bob Cousy Award, presented to the top guard in college basketball, and was an ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District selection...Navy's nine-game home winning streak to open the season wsa the second-longest in school history...American opened Patriot League play at 3-0 for the first time in school history...Navy earned its first-ever spot in the College.Insider.com top 25 on Jan. 12...Navy (11) and Lehigh (10) each won double-digit games in non-League play...Lehigh's Matt Szalachowksi is one of 30 candidates for the 2008-09 Lowe's Senior CLASS Award, presented to a student-athlete based on classroom, character, community and competition...American's Derrick Mercer and Garrison Carr are the first set of Eagle teammates to both have over 1,000 career points in the same season since 1996...Army has already had 12 different players score in double figures this season...Navy senior guard Kaleo Kina became the fifth student-athlete in Patriot League history to earn three consecutive Player of the Week awards on Dec. 15. Kina was also one of four finalists for CollegeHoops.net Mid-Major Player of the Week honors on the same week...After posting a 2-1 record from Dec. 1-7, Navy was honored as the Mid-Major Team of the Week by in the FoxSports.com Weekly Wrap. The Mids had improved to 7-2 at the time...Navy has the best single-game shooting performance in the nation. The Mids' connected on 71.4 percent of their shots (25-for-35) in a 78-65 win over UT-San Antonio on Dec. 2....Lehigh's 76-71 win over Rutgers on Nov. 26 was the first for the Mountain Hawks against a Big East team in their Patriot League history, and first for the Patriot League against the Big East since 2005.

Patriot League Games

American (20-7, 12-1 PL), at Lafayette (8-20, 4-9 PL), Saturday, 2 p.m.
Kirby Sports Center; Easton, Pa. TV: Lafayette Sports Network, MASN
Series: American, 22-16 Streak: American, Eight Wins
Last Meeting: American, 78-65 (1.31.09) Last Lafayette Win: 93-89 (OT) (2.19.05)

First-place American and Lafayette close the regular season by facing off in Easton...American has already clinched the No. 1 seed in the Patriot League Tournament, and is trying to become just the seventh team in League annals to finish at least with a 13-1 Patriot League record..Lafayette can not rise any higher than the No. 5 seed...If the Eagles win, the teams would face off in the Patriot League quarterfinals on Wednesday in Washington, with the Leopards playing as the No. 8 seed...American recorded a 78-65 win at home on Jan. 31, its eighth consecutive victory in the series...Each of the eight wins have come by double digits, including a 87-76 triumph at Lafayette last season...The Eagles have scored at least 70 points in the last 14 matchups with the Leopards, and are trying to sweep the season series for the fourth straight year...American leads the all-time series, 22-16, with a 10-5 advantage in regular-season League games.

American The Eagles clinched the No. 1 seed in the Patriot League Tournament for the second year in a row with a 64-59 win over Navy on Wednesday...American becomes the first Patriot League team since Lafayette in 1998-00 to earn the No. 1 seed in consecutive Tournaments, and also guaranteed becoming the first school to finish alone in first place in back-to-back seasons...The Eagles will play as the No. 1 seed for the third time in their eight-year Patriot League history, with the other occasion coming in their first League campaign in 2002...The Eagles won their ninth consecutive game, and 15th in the last 16 outings. They also earned a ninth straight win at Bender Arena, and 14th consecutive home victory against a Patriot League opponent...Navy was the last Patriot League team that American beat during that stretch...The game was close all the way, with Nick Hendra scoring five straight points to give the Eagles a 58-56 lead with 2:05 to go...Navy went back ahead by one, but Garrison Carr hit a pair of free throws with 28 seconds to go to start American's game-clinching 6-0 run...Carr made it a three-point game with free throws with 19 seconds left, and Frank Borden sealed the victory on a pair of foul shots with four seconds to play...Carr hit the game-winning shot with American trailing in the final minute of both contests against Navy this season...Carr led the Eagles with 20 points, while Hendra and Derrick Mercer scored 11 and Brian Gilmore added 10...American shot just 28.6 percent in the second half, but made up for it by hitting 10-of-14 foul shots after the break... The Eagles made 9-of-22 threes in the game, with four of those coming from Carr...Jordan Nichols had six points, nine rebounds, four blocks and three steals for American...The Eagles held an opponent under 60 points for the seventh straight game...The Eagles improved to 16-2 since Jordan Nichols was inserted into the starting lineup and Bryce Simon returned to the rotation on Dec. 20 against UMBC...The Eagles conclude their regular season at Lafayette on Saturday...American is trying to become the seventh team in League history to finish with a 13-1 Patriot League record or better. ..The Eagles are also looking to become just the third team in the nation with 11 road wins.

Lafayette The Leopards missed an opportunity to move up the standings by losing at home to Army, 79-55, on Wednesday night...They fell to a tie for seventh in the Patriot League, but can still climb to the No. 5 spot for the League Tournament with a win on Saturday and some help...Lafayette was swept in the season series by the Black Knights for the first time since 2002, and had their six-game home winning streak against Army snapped...Lafayette was also trying to win three consecutive games for the first time this season...The Leopards shot just 31.1 percent (19-for-61) in the game, and 6-for-28 from three-point range...Jared Mintz paced Lafayette with 12 points, while Michael Gruner added 11...Lafayette hosts first-place American on Saturday, with the Leopards trying to finish over .500 in home Patriot League games.

Lehigh (15-12, 5-8 PL) at Holy Cross (15-13, 10-3 PL), Saturday, 3:30 p.m.
Hart Center; Worcester, Mass.
Series: Holy Cross, 32-11 Streak: Holy Cross, One Win
Last Meeting: Holy Cross, 67-52 (1.31.09) Last Lehigh Win: 65-58 (2.29.08)

Lehigh and Holy Cross meet in Worcester with the Mountain Hawks trying to nail down the No. 4 seed and a home game in the Patriot League Tournament...Holy Cross has captured the No. 2 seed in the field, while Lehigh needs a win and a loss by either Army or Colgate to clinch the No. 4 position...The Crusaders notched a 67-52 win at Lehigh on Jan. 31, and has won six of the last seven and 18 of the last 21 meetings in the series...Holy Cross has a 12-game home winning streak against the Mountain Hawks, with Lehigh's last win in Worcester coming in 1998....Lehigh beat Holy Cross, 65-58, on the last day of the regular season in 2008 to clinch the No. 4 seed in the League Tournament...Holy Cross has a 32-11 advantage in the all-time matchups, and a 27-10 edge in regular-season League games.

Lehigh The Mountain Hawks remained in a tie for fourth place in the Patriot League with a 72-51 loss at Bucknell on Wednesday...Lehigh is tied for the final hosting position for the League quarterfinals with Colgate and Army...The Mountain Hawks saw their three-game winning streak against Bucknell come to an end...Lehigh fell behind 31-15 at halftime after shooting just 17.2 percent (5-for-29) in the first half...Lehigh shot 31.7 percent for the game, and 3-for-13 from three-point range...Zahir Carrington had the top individual effort for the Mountain Hawks, posting his ninth double-double of the year with 15 points and 12 rebounds...The mark of nine double-doubles leads the Patriot League...Marquis Hall scored 11 points, while Rob Keefer added 10...The Mountain Hawks recorded 10 steals in the game...Lehigh goes to Holy Cross on Saturday, needing a win and an Army loss to lock up the No. 4 seed in the Patriot League Tournament...The Mountain Hawks defeated the Crusaders at home under similar circumstances to earn the No. 4 seed in last year's tourney.

Holy Cross The Crusaders clinched the No. 2 seed in the Patriot League Tournament with a 60-58 win at Colgate on Wednesday...Holy Cross swept the season series with the Raiders, and closed its League road schedule with a 5-2 record...The game was competitive throughout, and was tied at 28 at the half...Colgate stormed out with a 12-3 run to open the second half and claim a 40-31 lead, but Holy Cross responded with a 17-5 spurt to go back ahead at 48-45 with 7:19 to go...The game stayed within a five-point Crusader lead until Eric Meister's free throw made it 58-52 with 1:03 left, but Colgate battled back to cut it to 59-58 with five seconds left...Devin Brown made one free throw on the other end for the Crusaders, and Colgate missed a three-point attempt at the buzzer...Brown paced Holy Cross with 13 points, while Andrew Beinert scored 12 and Meister totaled 10...The Crusaders held a 38-24 advantage on the boards, including 21 on the offensive glass...The Crusaders shot 40 percent in the game...They held Colgate to a 2-for-9 three-point shooting effort in the second half...Holy Cross concludes its regular-season slate at home against Lehigh on Saturday...The Crusaders are trying to improve on their 5-1 home record in League games.

Army (9-18, 5-8 PL) at Bucknell (7-21, 4-9 PL), Saturday, 7 p.m.
Sojka Pavilion; Lewisburg, Pa.
Series: Bucknell, 37-17 Streak: Army, Three Wins
Last Meeting: Army, 76-65 (1.31.09) Last Bucknell Win: 68-47 (3.4.07)

Army goes to Bucknell with seeding in the Patriot League Tournament on the line for both squads...The Black Knights can go as high as No. 4 in the field and host a quarterfinal game with a win and losses by Lehigh and Colgate, while the Bison can get to the No. 5 spot with a victory and help in other contests...Army has won the last three meetings against the Bison after Bucknell had won the previous 15 meetings...The Black Knights notched a 76-65 win at home on Jan. 31...Army also recorded a 68-52 win in its trip to Lewisburg last season for its first victory at Bucknell since 1997...Bucknell has a 37-17 lead in the all-time series, with a 31-6 mark in regular-season Patriot League games.

Army The Black Knights remained in the thick of the chase for the No. 4 seed in the Patriot League Tournament with a 79-55 win at Lafayette on Saturday...Army enters Saturday's play tied with Lehigh and Colgate for fourth place...The Black Knights recorded their first Patriot League road victory, and first win in Easton since 2002...It was also Army's first season sweep of the Leopars since the last win at Lafayette...The 24-point margin of victory was Army's biggest in a Patriot League game...Army shot 54.7 percent (29-for-53) for the game, while holding Lafayette to just 31.1 percent (19-for-61) shooting, including a 6-for-28 clip from three-point range for the Leopards...Army used first-half runs of 11-0 and 12-4 to open up a 41-23 lead at halftime, and put the game away with a 22-10 second-half surge for a 71-42 lead with 5:56 left...Julian Simmons led Army with 17 points in the game, followed by Cleveland Richard with 15 and Kenny Brewer with 11. Marcus Nelson had two blocks to set an Army single-season record with 30 this season...Army concludes its regular season at Bucknell on Saturday...The Black Knights need a win and losses by Lehigh and Colgate to earn the No. 4 seed in the Patriot League Tournament.

Bucknell The Bison posted one of their most impressive showings of the year with a 72-51 win over Lehigh on Wednesday...Bucknell joined Lafayette in a tie for seventh place in the League, and can go as high as No. 5 in the seeding for the League Tournament...The Bison raced out to a 31-15 lead by halftime, holding the Mountain Hawks to 17.2 percent (5-for-29) shooting in the first half...Bucknell went up by as many as 23 points and held a double-digit lead throughout the second half...Bucknell converted on 47.3 percent (26-for-55) of its shots, and posted an outstanding effort from three-point range (10-for-17) and the foul line (10-for-11)...Meanwhile, the Bison limited Lehigh to 31.7 percent (19-for-60) shooting from the field and a 3-for-13 showing from three-point range...Patrick Behan posted his fourth-consecutive 20-point effort with 23 points on 10-for-16 shooting, and also pulled down nine rebounds...Bryan Cohen scored 17 points, while Justin Castleberry added 13...Bucknell held a 40-33 advantage on the boards...Bucknell closes its regular-season Patriot League schedule by hosting Army on Saturday.

Colgate (9-18, 5-8 PL) at Navy (18-10, 7-6 PL), Saturday, 7 p.m.
Alumni Hall; Annapolis, Md.
Series: Colgate, 22-21 Streak: Navy, One Win
Last Meeting: Navy, 75-64 (1.31.09) Last Colgate Win: 73-62 (3.1.08)

Colgate has a chance at hosting a Patriot League quarterfinal game as it travels to Navy on Saturday evening...The Raiders are currently tied for fourth place in the League, and can reach the No. 4 seed with a win unless Lehigh wins and Army loses...The Raiders can also lock up the spot with a loss if Lehigh and Army both lose...Navy has already secured its fate as the No. 3 seed in the Tournament...Th eMids are going for the season sweep after ending a seven-game Colgate series win streak with a 75-64 win in Hamilton on Jan. 31...Colgate has a three-game win streak in Annapolis, with Navy's last home win over the Raiders coming in 2005...Colgate has a slim 22-21 lead in the series, and a 19-16 advantage in regular-season League games.

Colgate The Raiders missed an opportunity to move closer to the No. 4 seed in the Patriot League Tournament by falling at home to Holy Cross, 60-58, on Wednesday...The Raiders are tied for fourth place with Army and Lehigh...Colgate stormed out with a 12-3 run to open the second half and claim a 40-31 lead, but saw Holy Cross come back to take the advantage...The Raiders fell down by six with 1:03 left, but battled back with a three-point play by Ben Jonson and three-pointer by Trevaron Vinson to cut the deficit to 59-58 with five seconds left...After Holy Cross hit a free throw to go up two, Yaw Gyawu missed a running three-pointer that would have won it at the buzzer for Colgate..Jonson scored 18 points for the Raiders, converting 10-of-14 foul shots...Gyawu also reached double figures with 14 points...Colgate made 46.2 percent of its shots (18-for-39), but struggled from long range in the second half after a 5-for-7 showing from downtown in the first half...The Raiders conclude their regular-season schedule at Navy on Saturday night..The Raiders scored a 73-62 victory at home against Navy in last year's finale to seal the No. 3 seed on their way to the Patriot League Championship game.

Navy The Mids fell at American, 64-59, on Wednesday night, but were still able to clinch the No. 3 seed in the Patriot League Tournament...The Mids were swept in the season series with the Eagles, with each game decided in the final seconds...Navy held a 56-53 lead with just over four minutes to play befor American scored five straight points to take the lead...The Mids went back ahead at 59-58 on a three-pointer by Adam Teague with 1:54 to go...American re-gained the lead on a pair of free throws with 28 seconds left, and the Mids could not get another bucket down the stretch...Teague and Kaleo Kina each had 19 points and six rebounds to lead Navy, with Kina also adding seven assists. The Mids connected on 47.1 percent (24-of-51) of their shots, but made just 6-of-18 from three-point range...Navy closes its regular season at home against Colgate...The Mids are 11-2 at Alumni Hall this year, with a 4-2 mark in League games.