WORCESTER, Mass. – The Holy Cross men's basketball team couldn't contain Navy, falling by a score of 80-70 on Wednesday, Jan. 10 at the Hart Center at the Luth Athletic Complex in Patriot League action. 

Senior guard Joe Octave led the Crusaders (3-13, 0-3) with 20 points and pulled down nine rebounds. Junior forward Caleb Kenney chipped in a double-double of 14 points and 11 rebounds, while sophomore guard Will Batchelder scored 15 points. 

The Midshipmen (6-8, 2-1) were led by an impressive showing from Mac McDonald, who scored 35 points. Austin Benigni (17 points) and Mike Woods (13 points) were also in double figures. 

HOW IT HAPPENED 

• Back-to-back threes by freshman Joe Nugent and Batchelder opened up a 6-0 lead for the Crusaders less than a minute in. Navy was able to cut within 6-4 with 16:40 to go, but Octave's 3-pointer extended the lead to 9-4 a minute later. 
• The Crusaders' advantage grew to 22-11 after back-to-back layups from senior forward Louth-M Coulibaly and Kenney before a layup from MacDonald cut the deficit back to single digits. 
• A three from freshman guard DeAndre Williams gave Holy Cross its largest lead of the night, 25-13, with 6:20 left in the first half. 
• An 11-1 run by Navy made it a 26-24 game with 4:05 left in the opening frame, and the Midshipmen knotted the score at 28-28 with 2:09 remaining in the first after a three-pointer by MacDonald. 
• MacDonald's free throw gave Navy its first lead of the night, 29-28, with 54 seconds left. Octave's layup with 37 seconds left tilted the lead back in Holy Cross' favor, 30-29, and Kenney blocked Navy's shot at the buzzer to preserve the halftime advantage for the Crusaders. 
• The Crusaders built a six-point lead out of the gate in the second half after a three from Nugent and a layup from Kenney. 
• The Midshipmen were able to chip away, eventually tying the game at 42-42 on an and-one with 13:19 left. After a back-and-forth battle, freshman AJ Wills gave the Crusaders a 49-48 lead on a layup with 9:30 remaining, but Navy took the lead for good on a layup with 8:26 to go. 

BEYOND THE BOX SCORE: 

• Octave's 20-point night was his sixth showing of the year with 20 or more points. 
• Kenney's double-double was his first of the season. 

UP NEXT: 

• The Crusaders hit the road to take on Lehigh on Saturday, Jan. 13.
• Tipoff is set for 5 p.m. in Bethlehem, Pa. 

FOLLOW THE CRUSADERS 
Be sure to follow the Holy Cross men's basketball team — and all things Crusader Athletics — on social media!
Twitter - @HCrossMBB | @goholycross
Instagram - @hcrossmbb | @goholycross
Facebook - Holy Cross Men's Basketball | Holy Cross Athletics
YouTube - GoHolyCross