11 November, 2006
by Elliot Smilowitz
| |
1st |
2nd |
Final |
| Navy (1-0) |
25 |
48 |
73 |
| Loyola Md. (0-1) |
34 |
27 |
61 |
| Carnesecca Arena – Queens, NY |
Boxscore |
| Â |
|
Navy came back from a double-digit second-half deficit to down Loyola of Maryland, 73-61. Greg Sprink led the way for the Middies with 21 points, picking up points elsewhere on a night when his long range shot was not falling. Just 1of-7 for three, Sprink was 5-of-5 for two and 8-of-9 on free throws.
Loyola had a 38-25 lead early in the second half, but Navy chipped away for ten minutes before making a 13-0 run to claim the lead. T.J. Topercer keyed the comeback with 15 second-half points, 17 overall. Trey Stanton added 17 points and Kaleo Kina had 10.
Marquis Sullivan keyed the Greyhounds with 14 first-half points, including three treys, but could only muster 2 more points in the second half. Gerald Brown led Loyola with 24 points. Brown had 7 turnovers, though.
Navy’s second-round opponent in the 2K Sports Coaches Vs Cancer Classic will be St. John’s, who upended North Florida 74-53 Friday night. The Middies and Red Storm battle Saturday, with the winner going to Madison Square Garden for the semifinals next week.
|
| Â |
| Keys to the Game |
| Key sequence |
With 9:06 left, Loyola established a 52-41 lead. Then Topercer hit a trey, Sprink hit two free throws off a Loyola miss, and Topercer hit two free throws. A Clif Colbert steal led to a Trey Stanton dunk. Then Topercer hit a lay-up off a turnover, grabbed a steal, and fed Corey Johnson for a lay-up to take the lead. In a bit over two minutes, Navy went on a 13-0 run while allowing Loyola to take only one field goal attempt. |
| Key sign it was over |
A Stanton three-pointer gave Navy a 4-point lead with 1:01 left. Loyola went into “foul and shoot threes†mode, but the Greyhounds went 0-for-4 the rest of the way and Navy went 8-for-8 from the free throw line in the final minute to ice the game.
|
| Key performance |
Topercer scored 17 points in 22 minutes for the Middies, hitting three treys and going 4-for-4 from the free throw line. Fellow freshman starter Stanton also scored 17, hit four treys, and added a game-high 8 rebounds.
|
| Key statistic |
Navy converted a superhuman 27 of 28 free throw attempts. In comparison, Loyola hit 13 of their 20 tries.
|
| |
| Â |
| Notes |
| – |
Navy’s starting lineup accounted for all 73 of the team’s points. The bench went a combined 0-for-9 from the floor.
|
| |
| – |
Guards Sprink and Johnson found uncharacteristic foul trouble. Both finished with four personal fouls. Sprink sat down in a tie game with 6 minutes to play when he got his fourth foul. He returned at 4:02.
|
| |
| – |
Johnson and Kina, natural shooting guards who are sharing point duties, combined for 8 assists and 8 turnovers.
|
| |
| – |
Navy was 6-of-12 on three-pointers in the second half, and 5-of-13 on two-pointers.
|
| |
| – |
Navy outrebounded Loyola 29-27. Stanton’s 8 and Johnson’s 7 paced the Midshipmen.
|
| |
You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.
You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
