22 February, 2007
by Elliot Smilowitz
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1st |
2nd |
Final |
| Lafayette (9-19, 3-10 Patriot) |
38 |
27 |
65 |
| Army (14-14, 4-9 Patriot) |
47 |
36 |
83 |
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If someone said that half of Army’s points in a game came from just two players, most Black Knight fans would have a pretty good idea of who the two players were. And indeed, it was Jarell Brown and Matt Bell who combined for 49 points to lead Army to an 83-65 drubbing of Lafayette.
The stat lines were nearly identical: For Jarell Brown, 25 points on 7-of-14 shooting from the floor and 7-of-7 from the line. For Bell, 24 points on 7-of-12 shooting from the floor nad 8-of-11 from the line. For the rest of the team, 34 points on 12-of-17 shooting from the floor and 9-of-13 from the line. Lafayette’s Andrew Brown had a big game with 19 points, including 4 three-pointers, but it wasn’t nearly enough to keep the Leopards in the game.
Army found their first double-digit lead just 8 minutes into the game. Lafayette briefly cut within single digits a few times, the last of which came with 18:43 to go in the game. The Knights responded to it with a 14-1 run to put the game entirely out of reach. Army held off any chance of a comeback by shooting 77.4 percent from the line on the night.
The win catapults Army into a three-way tie with Navy and Colgate for fifth place in the Patriot League, and drops Lafayette into sole possession of last place. A win at American on Friday would give the Leopards a chance of avoiding the No. 8 seed in the tournament with tiebreakers, if several other games fell properly.
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| Keys to the Game |
| Key sequence |
With 12:25 left in the first half, Doug Williams and Jarell Brown hit back-to-back baskets to put Army up 20-9. It was the culmination of a huge early spurt that gave Army the advantage for the rest of the night.
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| Key sign it was over |
After Lafayette brought their deficit within 9 early in the second half, Army made a 14-1 run to extend their lead to 63-41 with 14:53 to go in the game. Bell had 6 of the 14 points.
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| Key performance |
Jarell Brown and Bell share the honors, getting a combined 49 points on 14-of-26 shooting from the field.
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| Key statistic |
Lafayette shot 6-of-22 for three. The Leopards need their long-range game to be effective for them to stay in games.
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| Notes |
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Chris Walker was the only dressed Army player not to see time. Little-used center Jimmy Sewell played 10 minutes, garnering 5 points, 3 rebounds and 3 blocks.
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The game was light on ball control, with Lafayette surrendering 15 turnovers and Army 20.
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Army won the battle of the boards 32-23. Bell’s 6 rebounds were a game high.
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Lafayette heads to American for their last game of the regular season Friday night. Army hosts Bucknell Saturday for Senior Day.
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