ANNAPOLIS, Md. – Junior guard
Austin Butler and freshman forward
Joe Pridgen both scored 20 points, but the Holy Cross men's basketball team was defeated by Navy 81-66 at Alumni Hall. The Crusaders fall to 3-19 on the season and 2-7 in the Patriot League with the loss, while the Midshipmen improve to 12-8 overall and 6-3 in the conference.
Navy hit 56.1 percent of its field goal attempts and 90.0 percent of its free throws on the night, while committing just six turnovers and holding a 27-22 rebounding advantage. Holy Cross was able to connect on 48.8 percent of its shots from the floor and 83.3 percent of its attempts at the charity stripe.
The Crusaders opened the game with an 11-9 lead after the first seven minutes of play, before the Midshipmen used an 11-2 run to pull in front. Holy Cross scored the next five points to close the gap, and the Navy lead stood at 26-23 with four minutes left before the break. The Midshipmen then closed out the half with an 11-0 spurt to take a 37-23 advantage into the locker room.
Navy increased its lead to 19 points (46-27) early in the second half, before the Crusaders used a 15-7 run to close to within 11 (53-42) with 10:47 left to play. But the Midshipmen took control of the game by scoring the next nine points, and went on to post a 15-point victory.
Junior forward
Matt Faw finished the game with 12 points, four rebounds and two assists, while junior forward
Connor Niego added 11 points, three rebounds and two steals. Navy was led by Evan Wieck with 24 points, four rebounds and three assists.
Holy Cross returns to action on Saturday, Feb. 1, when it plays host to Colgate at 2:00 p.m.
BEYOND THE BOX SCORE:
• Pridgen scored at least 20 points for the fourth straight game, becoming the first Crusader to accomplish that feat since Kevin Hamilton (Jan. 25-Feb. 4, 2006).
• Butler and Pridgen gave Holy Cross two 20-point scorers for the second time in the last three games.
• The Crusaders hit 20 of 24 free throws (83.3 percent), tying for their second-best percentage in a single game this season.
