Feb. 16, 2008

Box Score | Highlights

EASTON, Pa. - With 0.4 seconds left in the game, Navy's Greg Sprink drove the lane and dished off to Clif Colbert who hit an eight-footer on the baseline to give the Midshipmen an 82-80 win over Lafayette at Kirby Sports Center on Saturday afternoon.

Matt Betley's three-pointer on the preceding possession tied the game 80-80 with 34 seconds left, the final of seven ties in the game. Betley led the Leopards with 16 points and six rebounds.

In the final five minutes of the second half, Andrew Brown hit a deep three-pointer with one second left on the shot clock to cut Navy's lead to 76-72. A layup and free throw from Betley and two Bilal Abdullah free throws trimmed the advantage to 78-77 at 2:06.

On Navy's next possession, Sprink's three-pointer rimmed off. Brown missed a jumper at the other end and Navy's T.J. Topercer secured the rebound and was fouled. He went to the line where he made 1-of-2. Lafayette failed to score on its next possession, when Abdullah missed a layup. Topercer was fouled again and made 1-of-2. Lafayette trailed 80-77 with 46 seconds remaining.

Betley's three-pointer with a half minute remaining tied the game before Colbert, who went 7-for-8 from the field, hit the game winner. Colbert came into the game, averaging 3.7 ppg, and ended the afternoon with 18.

In the first half, there were eight lead changes and five ties, the final of which sent the teams to the locker rooms knotted at 46-46. Sprink (13) and Chris Harris combined for 28. The Leopards' 46 points were the most scored in the first half this season while 46 were the most they have given up.

In the second half, Betley opened scoring with a basket two minutes in and Abdullah made a three from the corner to give Lafayette the 51-46 lead with 17:30 on the clock. The Leopards led by five points two more times in the second half before Navy went on a 17-7 run with two three's from Harris and a Romeo Garcia trey to lead 71-64 at 8:15. Colbert's layup with 7:13 remaining gave the Midshipmen an eight-point advantage, their largest lead of the game (73-65).

Sprink led Navy (13-12, 6-4) in points (24), rebounds (11) and assists (4) while Harris finished with 22 points, including seven three-pointers. Brown and Abdullah finished the game with 14 points apiece while Ted Detmer contributed 10 points and five boards.

Lafayette (14-11, 5-5) travels to Bucknell on Wednesday at 7 p.m.

GAME NOTES:
• Junior guard Andrew Brown is ranked second on Lafayette's all-time three-pointer career list with 204. Tyson Whitfield is first on the all-time list recording 271 three's from 1997-2001.
• Andrew Brown is second on the single-season three-pointer list with 85 in the first 25 games.
• Senior guard Bilal Abdullah is 23rd with 1,163 points on the all-time career scoring list.
• All ten players who stepped onto the court for the Leopards scored at least three points.
• Jeff Kari matched his career high in steals with five. He also had five steals against NJIT on Dec. 3.