Jan. 19, 2009

Center Valley, Pa. - Three Patriot League men's basketball games are set for Wednesday's slate, including a matchup of teams with winning League marks when Holy Cross visits Navy. Lehigh's Zahir Carrington and Holy Cross' R.J. Evans picked up Monday's Patriot League/Anaconda Player and Rookie of the Week awards, respectively.

Patriot League Men's Basketball Release - 1.19.09

Patriot League/Anaconda Player of the Week (Jan. 12-18)

Zahir Carrington, Lehigh Sr., F, 6'7, 225, Phiadelphia, Pa./Masternan

Carrington receives his second Anaconda Player of the Week award of the season after an impressive week in both scoring and rebounding in two home games for the Mountain Hawks. He scored 21 points and pulled down 11 rebounds in a 63-58 loss to Navy on Wednesday, then notched 18 points and six boards in a 77-57 win over Army on Saturday. Carrington averaged 19.5 points and 8.5 rebounds in the two games, while connecting on 54 percent (14-of-26) of his shots from the floor. The performance against Navy was Carrington's Patriot League-leading fifth double-double of the season, and was his third consecutive double-double outing at the time. The 21 points in that contest also tied Carrington's season-high. Carrington is averaging 19.5 points and 9.8 rebounds in Lehigh's last four games, and leads the Mountain Hawks in scoring with 14.6 points per game for the year. He also leads the Patriot League with 7.6 rebounds per game this year.

Patriot League/Anaconda Rookie of the Week (Jan. 12-18)

R.J. Evans, Holy Cross Fr., G, 6'3, 200, Salem, Conn./Norwich Free Academy

Evans becomes just the seventh player in Patriot League history with at least six Anaconda Rookie of the Week awards after leading the Crusaders to a pair of wins last week. He led the team in scoring in a 47-36 triumph at Army on Wednesday, notching 17 points while pulling down five rebounds and three steals in the victory. Evans had seven rebounds to go with seven points in Holy Cross' 68-56 win at Bucknell on Saturday. He averaged 12.0 points, 6.0 rebounds and 2.0 steals in the two contests. Evans has led Holy Cross in scoring seven times this season, while reaching double figures 13 times. The six Rookie of the Week honors tie Evans with four other players for the third-highest total in Patriot League history. That group includes Lehigh's Rob Keefer, the 2007-08 Patriot League Rookie of the Year. The only players with more Rookie of the Week honors are Lehigh's Marquis Hall (2006-07) and Bucknell's Kevin Bettencourt (2002-03). Each player earned nine Rookie of the Week awards.

Patriot League Notebook

Winning Squads Meet In Annapolis on Wednesday

Two unbeaten teams remain in Patriot League men's basketball, but one will have a very tough challenge to stay that way after Wednesday's games. Holy Cross takes its 3-0 record into Annapolis to take on Navy, with the Mids boasting a 2-1 League record after falling at Lafayette on Saturday. Navy has a perfect 8-0 record at home this season. Lafayette will try to stay close with the leaders when it visits Bucknell, which is looking for its first League win. Both Lehigh and Colgate will try to get to .500 in League action when they face off in Hamilton. American and Army are both off until the weekend.

American, Holy CRoss Share League Lead at 3-0

American and Holy Cross took the early lead in the Patriot League men's basketball race on Saturday, with each team moving to 3-0 in League action with a double-digit victory on the road. All four of Saturday's contests were decided by double digits, with Lafayette and Lehigh each recording home victories. The Eagles earned their sixth straight victory overall with a 79-49 triumph at Colgate. Holy Cross held off Bucknell for a 68-56 win in Lewisburg in an ESPNU-televised contest. Lafayette took down the remaining unbeaten League squad coming into the day, as the Leopards improved to 2-1 with an 84-69 win against Navy. Lehigh earned its first Patriot League victory by knocking off Army, 77-57.

Inauguration Lightens Wednesday's Schedule

Due to the presidential inauguration week, Army and American decided before the season to change the date of their matchup in Bender Arena. The teams will instead meet at American on Feb. 4, which was an open date on the League schedule.

American Off to First 3-0 Start

American earned its first Patriot League title last season, and the Eagles have kept the good times rolling by getting off to their first 3-0 start in Patriot League play this year. The Eagles are in their eighth season as a League member. American has won seven consecutive games against Patriot League teams counting last year's Tournament, and has beaten every team but Navy during that stretch. American's current six-game win streak is tied for 10th-longest nationally. Holy Cross is off to a more common 3-0 start, with the Crusaders now at the mark two of the last three years.

Navy's Kina Joins Exclusive Company

Navy senior guard Kaleo Kina has put himself in rare air in the Patriot League record books throughout the 2008-09 season. He became just the fifth student-athlete in League annals to earn three consecutive Player of the Week honors in December, and later became the seventh honoree to receive the award four times in a season. Now, Kina joins an even less populated group. He recently became the third Patriot Leaguer 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.

Patriot League Back On ESPNU

The Patriot League has already made two appearances on ESPNU this season, with four still to go. Two of those will come this weekend, as American visits Holy Cross on Saturday afternoon and Navy is at Army on Sunday. The remaining Patriot League games on ESPNU are Colgate at American on Feb. 14 and Lafayette at Lehigh on Feb. 22.

American Among Fab 15 on the Road

By winning at Colgate on Saturday, American became one of just 15 teams in the country with at least six road victories this season (through Sunday's games). The Eagles are 6-5 in their 11 contests away from Bender Arena. Only Butler, Austin Peay, College of Charleston and St. Bonaventure have more road wins than American this season.

Navy Among Dwindling Group of Undefeated Home Squads

Navy puts its perfect 8-0 mark at Alumni Hall on the line against Holy Cross on Wednesday, as the Mids are one of 43 Division I teams that still have an undefeated record at home (through Sunday's games). Navy is one of only 27of those teams whose undefeated home record consists of at least eight victories.

Patriot League All-Access Returns in 2009

Watch the majority of Patriot League Men's and Women's Basketball regular-season League and tournament games on high-speed Broadband on the Patriot League All-Access package. For $9.95 a month, this cutting-edge technology takes you from your seat to the sideline with multi-camera coverage. Visit your school's website or www.PatriotLeague.com for more information.

Patriot League Games

Holy Cross (8-10, 3-0 PL) at Navy (13-5, 2-1 PL), Wednesday, 7 p.m.
Alumni Hall; Annapolis, Md.
Series: Holy Cross, 29-16 Streak: Navy, Two Wins
Last Meeting: Navy, 72-66 (2.20.08) Last Holy Cross Win: 68-40 (2.15.07)

Holy Cross and Navy square off in a matchup of teams in the top half of the Patriot League standings...The Crusaders are tied for first at 3-0, with the Mids in a tie for third at 2-1...Navy swept the season series last year, winning 85-74 at Holy Cross on Jan. 23 and 72-66 at home on Feb. 20...The Mids snapped a 17-game series losing streak with their first win against the Crusaders last year...Holy Cross goes for its second 4-0 start in Patriot League play in the last three seasons...Navy has not opened 3-1 through four League games since 2002..Holy Cross holds a 29-16 edge in the all-time series, and is up, 20-14, in Patriot League regular-season games.

Holy Cross Holy Cross knocked off Bucknell, 68-56, in Lewisburg on Saturday to move to 3-0 in League action...The Crusaders are 3-0 in the Patriot League for the second time in the last three years...They have also won the first two contests of their three-game road trip...It was Holy Cross' second straight win at Bucknell after losing the previous five trips to Sojka Pavilion...The road team has won the last three games in the series...The Crusaders opened up a 30-15 lead at halftime, and went up by 20 after scoring the first five points of the second half...Bucknell cut the lead to three with five minutes to play, but Holy Cross responded with four straight points to build the lead back to seven and hit 14-of-15 free throws in the final three minutes to pull away for the victory... Andrew Keister had 18 points and 10 rebounds in the game for his second double-double of the year...He tied his career high for points while hitting 8-of-9 field goal attempts...The Crusaders also got a big day from senior point guard Pat Doherty, who was playing just his fourth game after missing the first half of the season with an injury... Doherty tied for the team lead with 18 points while recording seven assists and three steals without a turnover...The Crusaders held a 43-28 advantage on the boards, and connected on 31-of-40 foul shots...The Crusaders have won three of their last four road games after dropping their first six away from home...They are 2-0 on the road in Patriot League play.

Navy The Mids saw their five-game winning streak come to an end and dropped their first Patriot League game of the year with an 84-69 loss at Lafayette on Saturday...Navy had won its last two trips to Lafayette...The Leopards took an 18-17 edge in Patriot League regular-season games against the Mids...Navy fell to 2-1 in League action after its first 2-0 start since 2001..It was the first loss in 10 games for Navy's current starting lineup of O.J. Avworo, Chris Harris, Kaleo Kina, Adam Teague and Mark Veazey...Navy was down by just two points with 6:47 left in a back and forth game, but Lafayette closed the contest with a 23-10 run...Kaleo Kina and Chris Harris shared the team lead with 16 points apiece...Kina last week became the third player in Patriot League history with 1,300 points, 400 rebounds, 300 assists and 150 steals in his career...He has scored in double figures in 21 straight games, matching the longest streak for a Navy player since David Robinson scored in 76 straight (Chris Williams in 2001 also scored in double-figures in 21 straight games)...The streak is tied for the seventh-longest in school history...Adam Teague tallied 15 points, as Navy has had at least three players score in double figures in six straight games...Lafayette became the first team in 26 games to shoot over 50.0 percent against Navy, dating back to last year...Navy will try to extend its perfect 8-0 home record when it takes on Holy Cross.

Lafayette (6-11, 2-1 PL) at Bucknell (3-14, 0-3 PL),Wednesday, 7 p.m.
Sojka Pavilion; Lewisburg, Pa.
Series: Lafayette, 83-58 Streak: Bucknell, One Win
Last Meeting: Bucknell 77-75 (OT) (2.20.08) Last Lafayette Win: 80-68 (1.23.08)

Lafayette and Bucknell renew their in-state rivalry in Lewisburg...The teams split the season series last year, with each winning on their home court...Lafayette posted an 80-68 win in Easton on Jan. 23, while Bucknell came back with a 77-75 triumph in overtime at home on Feb. 20...Bucknell had an eight-game series win streak before Lafayette's victory last season, and has now won nine of the last 10 meetings overall...Bucknell's victory on Feb. 20 was its last win in a Patriot League regular-season contest, as the Bison have dropped five consecutive League games...Lafayette has an 83-58 advantage in the all-time series, but Bucknell is up, 26-10, in regular-season League games.

Lafayette The Leopards won their second consecutive game and moved to 2-1 in League play with an 84-69 win over Navy on Saturday...Lafayette beat Navy at home for the first time since 2006, and claimed an 18-17 lead in Patriot League games between the schools...Lafayette also moved over .500 at home this season with a 5-4 mark...The Leopards were up by 12 points early in the second half, but saw Navy cut it to two...Lafayette responded by closing the game with a 23-10 run to score the victory...Andrew Brown led the Leopards with 23 points...Jared Mintz posted his first career double-double in the win, scoring 17 points and pulling down 10 rebounds...Both marks are career highs...Ryan Willen had seven points in the game...Both Mintz and Willen moved into the starting lineup when Patriot League play began on Jan. 10, and have started each of the last three games...The 15-point triumph was Lafayette's largest victory of the season...Lafayette connected on 27-of-30 foul shots in the contest, and established a season-high by hitting 54.2 percent (26-of-48) of its shots from the field...Lafayette became the first team in the last 26 games to shoot higher than 50.0 percent against the Mids...The Leopards are 2-1 in Patriot League play for the second year in a row...Lafayette attempts to end a seven-game road losing streak when it visits Bucknell...The Leopards have not won on the road since opening the season with a 73-67 triumph at Wagner on Nov. 14.

Bucknell The Bison are 0-3 in the Patriot League for the first time ever after losing at home to Holy Cross, 68-56, on Saturday...It was Bucknell's eighth consecutive loss overall...The Bison have lost the last two home matchups with the Crusaders after winning the previous five...The road team has won the last three games in the series...The Bison fell to 3-4 at home this season...After fallling behind by 20, the Bison used a 13-2 run to get back in the contest and eventually cut the Crusader lead to 48-45 with five minutes to play...Holy Cross answered with four straight points and went on to the victory from there...Patrick Behan paced Bucknell with 12 points, while G.W. Boon and Jason Vegotsky each had 11 off the bench...Darryl Shazier had six assists without a turnover, and became the first Bucknell player to play all 40 minutes of a regulation-time game since Dan Blankenship did it against Lafayette in 2003...Shazier leads the Patriot League with five assists per game.

Lehigh (11-6, 1-2 PL) at Colgate (5-11, 1-2 PL), Wednesday, 7 p.m.
Cotterell Court; Hamilton, N.Y.
Series: Colgate, 44-26 Streak: Colgate, One Win
Last Meeting: Colgate, 71-63 (2.20.08) Last Lehigh Win: 63-60 (1.23.08)

Lehigh and Colgate match up in Hamilton with each squad in search of a .500 record in League action...The teams split the season series last year with each winning on their home court...Lehigh earned a 63-60 win in the first meeting on Jan. 23, with Colgate notching a 71-63 triumph on Feb. 20...The Mountain Hawks have won six of the last seven games in the series, with each contest decided by less than 10 points...Colgate has not been 2-2 or better through four League games since 2005...Colgate has a 44-26 advantage in the all-time series, and a 24-12 lead in Patriot League regular-season action.

Lehigh The Mountain Hawks got in the win column in Patriot League action with a 77-57 victory over Army at home on Saturday...Lehigh snapped a three-game losing skid overall, and improved to 11-6 for the season and 1-2 in the League...Lehigh has won seven consecutive regular-season home games against Army...The Mountain Hawks built a 19-point lead early in the game, though Army closed to 38-28 at halftime...Lehigh pulled away throughout the second half, eventually building the lead to 20 and cruising to the 77-57 win...The Mountain Hawks got balanced scoring from three players, with Marquis Hall scoring 20 points, Zahir Carrington tallying 18 and Rob Keefer scoring 14...Hall tied his career-high with five three-pointers and led the Mountain Hawks with eight assists...It was the most points for Hall in the last six contests, and pulled him within 14 points of 1,000 for his career...Carrington saw his streak of three consecutive double-doubles come to an end, but still leads the Patriot League with five such efforts this season...He is averaging 19.5 points and 9.8 rebounds in the last four games, and leads the Patriot League with 7.6 rebounds per game this season...Lehigh tallied 18 assists on 27 field goals, and committed only 11 turnovers...It shot 48 percent from the field, with a 10-of-20 effort from three-point range...The Mountain Hawks are 6-3 at home, and will post that same mark on the road with a win on Wednesday.

Colgate Colgate fell to 1-2 in Patriot League play with a 79-49 loss to American on Saturday...The Raiders dropped to 0-5 on their home court this season as they were playing their first home contest since Dec. 6...Colgate lost its second consecutive game, and has dropped each of the last nine meetings against American...Yaw Gyawu led the Raiders with nine points...Gyawu has been Colgate's leading scorer in each of its three Patriot League games while coming off the bench...He shot 52.6 percent in Colgate's two games last week...He leads all Patriot League freshman and is eighth overall with 13 points per game in League contests...Colgate goes for its first home win on Wednesday.

Team Notebooks

American (11-6, 3-0 PL) The Eagles improved to 3-0 in Patriot League action for the first time with a 79-49 victory at Colgate on Saturday...American has won a season-high six consecutive games overall, with each victory coming by double digits...The Eagles have won seven consecutive games against Patriot League teams including last year's League Tournament, and have beaten each squad except for Navy in that stretch...The Eagles moved over .500 on the road with a 6-5 record, giving them the most road victories for a Patriot League team...American ran its winning streak over Colgate to nine games, the longest active mark in a Patriot League series...The Eagles scored the first 15 points of the game to take control, and scored the final six points of the first half to take a commanding 40-20 lead at the break... American went up by as many as 32 points in the second half before settling on the 79-49 final...The Eagles were led by a huge day from senior Brian Gilmore, who scored a career-high 28 points while also setting a career-high with six three-pointers...Gilmore had 18 of his points in the first half, and also set a career record with 11 field goals...He shot 61 percent from the floor in American's two games last week...Derrick Mercer had a season-high with 16 points...American shot 65 percent on the way to its sixth consecutive double-digit victory, a first for the program since the 1958-59 season...American is back in action when it travels to Holy Cross in an ESPNU-televised contest on Saturday afternoon.

Army (4-13, 0-3 PL) The Black Knights dropped their fourth straight game and fell to 0-3 in League action with a 77-57 loss at Lehigh on Saturday...The Black Knights lost at Lehigh in a regular season game for the seventh consecutive time, though they did win in Bethlehem in each of the last two Patriot League Tournaments...Cleveland Richard and Julian Simmons led Army with 14 points apiece, but Lehigh led throughout...It was Simmons' fourth double-digit scoring game in the last five outings, and sixth this season...Army assisted on 16 of its 21 field goals and had just 13 turnovers, but shot only 36 percent from the floor...The Black Knights used their eighth starting lineup of the season, with Tyrell Thompson back as a starter for the first time since Nov. 23...Army resumes play when it hosts archrival Navy on Sunday in an ESPNU contest...It kicks off a three-game homestand as the Black Knights complete a stretch of five of the first six Patriot League games at Christl Arena.