March 1, 2008
Box Score
HAMILTON, N.Y. - Colgate outscored Navy, 46-30, in the second half, ending Navy's six-game win streak, defeating the Mids, 73-62. The loss drops Navy's record to 16-13 overall and 9-5 in the Patriot League. The Mids earned the second seed in the upcoming Patriot League Tournament, starting Wednesday.
"Colgate is by far the most talented and most complete team in the league, and they are playing well right now," said Navy head coach Billy Lange. "We missed some shots and they made some plays. Physically, they just wore us out inside and kind of imposed their will in the second half."
The Mids were plagued by turnovers and poor shooting offensively in the first eight minutes of the contest, falling behind 12-9. The Mids had just three field goals and five turnovers during the opening span.
However, the Mids responded with a 23-10 run over the next 10 minutes for a 32-22 advantage, fueled by Sprink. The 6-5 senior guard scored 10 of Navy's 23 points during the run, but picked up two fouls sending him to the bench. Sprink finished the first half with 10 points, while Kaleo Kina and Chris Harris added nine and seven, respectively.
The Mids dominated the glass in the opening 20 minutes, outrebounding Colgate, 28-17, and turned the ball over just twice in the last 12 minutes, helping the Mids overcome a 34.2 percent (13-of-38) shooting performance in the first half.
Navy's offense sputtered in the first eight minutes of the second half, as the Raiders outscored the Mids, 21-9, during that span, to take a 48-41 lead with 12 minutes to play.
The Mids started to chip away cutting the lead to 49-46, but Colgate's Kendall Chones scored the next six points to give the Raiders a 55-46 advantage with just over five minutes to play.
The Mids could get no closer than six the rest of the way, and Colgate hit 14-of-16 free throws down the stretch.
Navy was led by Sprink's 19 points and six rebounds, while Chris Harris added 14 points, nine rebounds and five assists. Kaleo Kina scored 17 points. The Mids shot just 32.9 percent from the field, and dished out just eight assists. Navy outrebounded the Raiders, 46-38, but made just 6-of-33 three-point attempts.
"They played great and we played good today. We just didn't knock down shots," said Sprink. "They have athletic big men and we weren't focused enough to stop them in the second half."
Chones led Colgate with 23 points and 12 rebounds.
The Mids will now play seventh-seeded Bucknell in the Patriot League Tournament first round in Annapolis at 7:00 pm.
"It doesn't matter who we play. We just have to come out and play Navy basketball," said Sprink. "We have to move on from this loss and prepare for the league tournament."
For ticket information, call 1-800-US4-NAVY.
# GO NAVY #
