Army West Point Athletics
Army West Point
6-4
St. Francis Brooklyn
2-8
King Leads Army at St. Francis Brooklyn
December 12, 2017 | Men's Basketball
BROOKLYN HEIGHTS, N.Y. - The Army West Point men's basketball team got back in the win column here Tuesday night following a 76-60 victory at St. Francis Brooklyn.
The Black Knights led wire-to-wire but the Terriers made it a close game on numerous occasions. Army started the contest on a 6-0 run but a little more than six minutes into the game the Cadets held just a slim edge at 10-7. Army then extended its advantage to 24-13 at the 7:59 mark to create a double digit gap between the teams. St. Francis Brooklyn would not go away though sparking a 9-0 run to pull within 24-22.Â
The Cadets responded with a run of their own to push the lead back to twin figures at 25-41 with two-and-a-half minutes remaining in the opening half. Army then maintained that edge and took a 44-30 lead into the break. St. Francis Brooklyn's score at halftime marked the Black Knights' second-best defensive first half and its best opening period against a Division I opponent.Â
The Terriers cut the double figure lead to 62-56 with just under eight minutes to play but the Cadets quickly increased their advantage and maintained that for the remainder of the game.Â
Rookie Alex King had himself a night, posting a game and career-best 24 points on 8-of-13 shooting from the floor. The Columbus, Ind., native added 3-of-5 makes from downtown and converted on five of his six attempts at the free throw line. He was also one rebound shy of earning his first career double-double after finishing with a game and career-best nine rebounds. He closed out his night with two steals.
Joining him in double figures was Tucker Blackwell with 12 points and Jordan Fox with 10 points. Blackwell drained a career-high four 3-pointers in the game, while Fox has now scored in twin figures in nine of Army's 10 contests, including three straight.Â
Tommy Funk dished out a game-high nine assists to go along with his two steals as well.Â
ARMY HIGHLIGHTS AND GAME NOTES
- Army finished shooting 50 percent (29-of-58) from the floor and 47.8 percent (11-of-23) from behind-the-arc. The Black Knights also converted on seven of their 12 attempts at the free throw line for 58.3 percent shooting.
- The Terriers closed out their night at 39.3 percent (22-of-56), 20 percent (4-of-20) and 72.7 percent (16-of-22), respectively.
- Matt Wilson saw his seven-game double-digit scoring streak halted in the contest after notching seven points in the game.Â
- Luke Morrison, John Miller and John Emezie each added five points to Army's final total.
- Fox chipped in five helpers, while Jacob Kessler pulled down five rebounds.
- St. Francis Brooklyn saw four players reach twin figures with Chauncey Hawkins' 14 points leading the way.Â
- The Black Knights outrebounded the Terriers 38-31.
- Army also held the edge on assists at 21-8.
- St. Francis Brooklyn posted a 32-30 advantage on points in the paint, a 24-14 edge on points off turnovers and a 10-7 lead on second-chance points.
- The Black Knights earned their largest lead at 16 points on two different occasions, with their most recent coming following a trey from Blackwell with 3:30 left to play.
TURNING POINT
- After holding a double-digit halftime lead, Army saw its advantage dwindled down to just 62-56 with 7:59 remaining. The Black Knights would not back down though answering with a 7-2 run to create a 69-58 gap between the teams. The Terriers were never able to recover.Â
UP NEXT
- The Black Knights close out their non-league schedule with a matchup against service-academy rival Air Force on Sunday.
- That contest is slated for 1:30 p.m. and will be played at the famous Madison Square Garden.
- The Falcons sport a 5-5 record and are on a nine-day break from action on prior to their trip to New York City.Â
