LYNCHBURG, Va. – The Navy men's basketball team (2-2) fought back from 16 points down in the second half to pull within three points of Liberty (5-0), but that was as close as the Midshipmen came after falling on the road to the Flames, 55-48, on Tuesday night at the Vines Center.
 
Cam Davis (Jr., Battlefield, Mo.) led the Midshipmen with a season-high 16 points, while the duo of John Carter Jr. (So., Spring Hill, Tenn.) and Greg Summers (So., Ocoee, Fla.) just missed double-doubles with 10 points and nine rebounds each. Summers set a career-high for rebounds and Luke Loehr (Jr., Inver Grove Heights, Minn.) also set a new personal best with nine boards. Navy controlled the glass throughout the game holding a 41-27 edge over the Flames. The Midshipmen also grabbed 10 offensive rebounds compared to just three from Liberty.
 
"We were rusty in the first half after a nine-day layoff," said Navy head coach Ed DeChellis. "We did not shoot the ball very well all night but I loved our defense, I loved our rebounding and I loved our toughness."
 
The Midshipmen got off to a slow start on the offensive end of the floor after starting the game just 2-for-14 from the field. Despite the cold shooting, Navy never trailed by more than 11 points in the first half. Down the stretch in the opening period, the Midshipmen got back-to-back baskets from Sean Yoder (Fr., Dublin, Pa.) and Davis to cut their deficit to six points. However, a late three-pointer from Liberty gave the Flames a 24-15 edge at the half.
 
Navy finished the first stanza shooting 22.2 percent from the floor and made just one of 10 three-pointers. On the other side, Liberty was just 33.3 percent from the field but five of the Flames' eight made field goals were from three-point range.
 
In the early going of the second half, the Flames used an 8-0 run to grab a 34-19 lead over the Midshipmen with 14:01 left in the contest and they grabbed a lead as many as 16 points at the 12:15 mark in the second half. Navy battled back into the contest with an 8-0 run of its own to cut their deficit to 39-31 with 9:55 left in regulation.
 
Navy continued to stay in the game as it pulled within seven points on three different occasions in the latter stages of the half before the game went into the final four minutes of regulation. Davis made it a four-point game with 2:16 left in the game after a three-pointer to make it a 47-43 affair. The Midshipmen inched closer with a Luke Loehr free throw to bring Navy within three points.
 
Navy looked to tie the game with a look from three-point range just before the one-minute mark in the game but the Midshipmen's shot just missed the mark and they still faced a three-point deficit. Liberty went 8-for-8 from the free-throw line over the final minute to ice the game and the Flames hung on to beat Navy, 55-48.
 
"This is a team [Liberty] that won 29 games last year and they had everybody returning," DeChellis commented. "Liberty went to the NCAA Tournament and beat Mississippi State in the first round last season and we came in here today and played them toe-to-toe.
 
"Our kids fought and I really loved our toughness. I love this team and I love their togetherness. We were down by 16 points and came storming back to pull within three points and had a chance to tie the game. I am disappointed we did not win the game but I am not disappointed in our effort tonight."
 
The Midshipmen return to Alumni Hall on Friday night at 7 p.m. as they host Lipscomb.