Game #14 / Patriot League Game #3 • at Holy Cross
Wednesday, Jan. 10 • 7 p.m. • Hart Center • Worcester, Mass.

Multimedia Information
Live Streaming - ESPN+ / Kevin Gehl, Jacob Van Ryn
Navy Radio - None
Live Statistics - NavySports.com

Five Starting Notes
1 – Current Navy players have totaled 22 career points in games played against the Crusaders.  The current Holy Cross roster includes players who have scored 122 career points against the Mids.
2 – Navy and Holy Cross have split the last eight games in the series, five of which were decided by single digits.  The home team won four-straight games from 2019 to '20 and the road team won four-straight games from 2022 to '23 (no games were played in 2021).
3 – The first Navy at Holy Cross game to be played at the Hart Center was Dec. 3, 1980.  That is the first Navy game to be played in any of the Patriot League's current home venues.
4 – Navy and Holy Cross have met in seven different cities, tied for the most among Navy's Patriot League opponents.  The Mids and the Crusaders have met in Annapolis, Md.; Honolulu, Hawaii; New York, N.Y.; Philadelphia, Pa.; Rochester, N.Y.; Upper Marlboro, Md. and Worcester, Mass.  Navy has played Duke in eight different cities and the Mids have played American in seven cities.
5 – Six returning Mids have already scored more points this season than they had totaled entering the year.

Game Information
•    Navy (5-8, 1-1) will play the first of two road games this week when it travels to Worcester, Mass., to play at Holy Cross (3-12, 0-2) Wednesday at 7 p.m.
•    ESPN+ will provide a video stream of the game.
•    Links to live statistics from the game can be accessed at NavySports.com.

Last Game
•    Navy was unable to maintain an early lead in an eventual 80-72 loss to Colgate.
•    Navy raced out to a 30-15 lead late in the first half.  Colgate closed to within 38-31 at halftime and took a 61-51 lead midway through the second half.
•    Navy winnowed the margin down to five points at 61-56 and 64-59, but could not pull any closer.
•    The Raiders shot 64 percent from the field in the second half, which included an 8-14 (57.1%) effort from three-point range.
•    Mac MacDonald scored 15 points for the Mids.  Donovan Draper posted 13 points, 11 rebounds and three steals.  Austin Benigni added 13 points and eight assists.

About Holy Cross
•    Holy Cross will open its Patriot League home schedule Wednesday night when it plays host to the Mids.
•    The Crusaders opened league play with road losses at Bucknell (70-58) and at Army (70-57).  
•    Those two wins snapped a six-game losing streak for Holy Cross, a span that included defeats to St. John's (N.Y.), Boston College and Harvard.
•    Both Navy and Holy Cross have suffered road losses to Quinnipiac.  The Mids lost to the Bobcats, 71-68, and the Crusaders fell, 77-57.
•    The Crusaders did register a 68-67 victory at Georgetown on Nov. 11.

Navy-Holy Cross Series
•    Holy Cross has a 47-28 advantage in the all-time series with Navy. This includes an 25-9 lead for the Crusaders in games played in Worcester, all of which have been played in the Hart Center.
•    The road team has won the last four games in the series.  This span followed a stretch in which the home team won four-straight games.
•    Holy Cross leads Navy, 37-25, in Patriot League regular season games.  That overall mark includes a 22-9 lead in games played in Worcester, with all of those games being played in the Hart Center.
•    The teams first met in the 1947 NCAA Tournament in New York City's Madison Square Garden.  The Crusaders won a 55-47 first-round game in the field of eight teams.
•    The teams met again in the first round of the 22-team 1953 NCAA Tournament.  Holy Cross won an 87-74 decision that day at The Palestra in Philadelphia.
•    Navy made one trip to Worcester prior to the Mids joining the Patriot League.  Holy Cross defeated Navy, 82-71, Dec. 3, 1980.

On This Date
•    Navy has posted a 20-9 record in games played on Jan. 10.  This includes a 7-2 record in Patriot League games.

Against This State
•    Navy has posted a 62-70 record in games played against opponents located in Massachusetts.

In This State
•    Navy has posted a 25-35 record in games played in Massachusetts.

Up Next
•    Navy heads back out on the road this weekend for the Saturday (2 p.m.) game at Lafayette.  

Taking Advantage of Court Time
•    Several Mids have either surpassed or are approaching the point totals for their careers with their efforts this season.

Player    Career through 2022-23    2023-24
Austin Benigni    146 pts / 31 gms.    184 pts. / 13 gms.
Mitch Fischer    8 pts. / 10 gms.    83 pts. / 13 gms.
Mac MacDonald    82 pts. / 28 gms.    88 pts. / 12 gms.
Lysander Rehnstrom    25 pts. / 16 gms.    52 pts. / 10 gms.
Kam Summers    46 pts. / 20 gms.    69 pts. / 13 gms.
Mike Woods    33 pts. / 18 gms.    69 pts. / 13 gms.

Not Getting to the FT Line 
•    Navy ranked 343rd nationally during the 2022-23 season with an average of 13.5 free throws attempted a game, and 344th with an average of 9.5 free throws made a game.
•    In 2023-24, the Mids rank 195th nationally in free throws attempted (19.2) and 205th in free throws made (13.5) per game. Though relatively low nationally, both of those averages lead all Patriot League teams.
•    Compared to their opponents this year, the Mids are -20 in free throws attempted and -14 in free throws made.
•    Holy Cross is averaging 13.1 free throws attempted a game (ninth in league) and 8.1 free throws made a game (10th in league).  The Crusaders are -52 in free throws attempted and -67 in free throws made compared to their opponents.

Close Games by Patriot League Teams
•    Navy's four games this season decided by five or fewer points ranks second among Patriot League teams.

Navy Bench Has Been a Strength
•    The Mids have received an average of at least 20 points a game from their bench since the start of the 2020-21 campaign.
•    The Navy reserve players have outscored their foes 349-175 this year.
•    Navy ranks first in the Patriot League and 59th nationally in bench scoring this season.

3-Point Percentage Low in Navy Games
•    Navy ranks 14th in defensive three-point field goal percentage as opponents are shooting 27.3 percent from beyond the arc against the Mids. 
•    Navy ranks 317th (out of 351 teams) in the country in offensive three-point field goal percentage.  The Mids are making 29.5 percent of their three-point field goal attempts.
•    Holy Cross ranks 183rd nationally and fourth in the league with its offensive three-point field goal percentage of 33.8 percent and 341st overall and 10th in the league in defensive three-point percentage with a mark of 37.8 percent.

Rebounding
•     Navy has been very good over the last number of years at winning the offensive rebound margin.
•    The Mids rank first in the Patriot League and 113th nationally this season with an average of 11.7 offensive rebounds per game.

Second-Chance Points 
•     Navy has scored more second-chance points than its foes in 186 of the 278 games (66.9%) it has played since the start of the 2014-15 season.  
•     34 of the 103 career points (33.3%) scored by Mike Woods have been second-chance points.
•    Navy has scored on 22 of the 41 (53.7%) career possessions in which Woods has grabbed an offensive rebound.
•    Navy has scored on 25 of the 40 (62.5%) possessions in which Donovan Draper has grabbed an offensive rebound.
•    Draper's offensive rebound average currently ranks among the best by a Mid in a season since it became an official statistics with the 1986-87 season.

Navy's Highest OR/G Average in a Season -- Since 1986-87
1.    3.45    Eddie Reddick, 1991
2.    3.41    David Robinson, 1987
3.    3.35    Hassan Booker, 1997
4.    3.23    Donovan Draper, 2024
5.    3.17    Sitapha Savane, 1997

•    Draper ranks among the Patriot League and NCAA leaders in several statistics.

Statistic    No.    Patriot League    NCAA
Double-Doubles    5    1    43
Rebounds    120    1    88
Rebounds/G    9.2    1    38
Def. Rebounds/G    6.00    1    63
Off. Rebounds/G    3.23    1    46
Steals    32    1    40
Steals/G    2.46    1    17

Navy Pace
•    Navy traditionally has been one of the more deliberate teams in terms of possessions per game under head coach Ed DeChellis.  
•    The Mids rank 265th this season with an average of 67.4 possessions a game.  
•    Holy Cross ranks 320th nationally with an average of 65.9 possessions a game.