THE BASICS:

• Score:  Army West Point 72, Holy Cross 68
• Records: Holy Cross 10-16, 5-10 PL; Army West Point 16-11, 7-8 PL
• Location: Christl Arena, West Point, N.Y.
• Date: February 17, 2016
• The Lead: Junior forward Malachi Alexander totaled 17 points, six rebounds and three assists, but the Holy Cross men's basketball team was defeated by Army West Point 72-68 at Christl Arena.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS:

• Senior guard Cullen Hamilton also played well for the Crusaders, totaling 17 points, three steals, two rebounds and two assists.
• The Black Knights were led by Kevin Ferguson with 25 points and 13 rebounds.
• Army made 49.1 percent of its field goal attempts (28 of 57) on the night, while Holy Cross was only able to connect on 42.4 percent of its shots from the floor (25 of 59).
• The Black Knights also held a 39-28 rebounding advantage.

HOW IT HAPPENED:

• The game was close early on, and Army held a 14-11 lead with 9:15 left in the first half.
• The Black Knights then used a 9-2 spurt over the next four minutes to extend their advantage to 10 points (23-13).
• The Crusaders came back a few minutes later with a 6-0 run, but still trailed by five points (34-29) heading into the locker room.
• Early in the second half, Army used an 11-2 spurt to push its lead back to double figures (45-34).
• But after the Black Knights led 47-36 with 15:38 remaining, Holy Cross scored nine of the next 11 points to cut the margin down to four (49-45).
• Army was later up 56-49, before the Crusaders used an 8-0 run to claim a 57-56 lead.
• Holy Cross was still up by one (59-58) with 4:22 left  to play, before the Black Knights used an 8-2 spurt to pull back in front for good.
• The Crusaders would have one last chance when they trailed 71-68 with less than 15 seconds remaining, but a three-point attempt by junior guard Anthony Thompson rimmed out and Army was able to hold on for the win.

UP NEXT:

• Holy Cross returns to action on Sunday, Feb. 21, when it plays host to American in a 12:05 p.m. game at the Hart Center.

BE PART OF THE ACTION:

• Single-game tickets to see the Crusaders are on sale now. Make sure you don't miss the opportunity to see the best collegiate basketball in Central Massachusetts! Tickets for Holy Cross basketball can be purchased online at GoHolyCross.com/tickets or over the phone by calling 1-844-GOCROSS.

KEEP CONNECTED:

• To stay updated on the Holy Cross men's basketball team, follow the Crusaders on Twitter @HCrossMBB and on Facebook at HolyCrossBasketball.
• You can also subscribe for email alerts for all news and information on the team by clicking here.