Black Knights Show Grit in Loss to Florida

Wednesday, December 2

Uncasville, Conn.

2:30 PM

Army West Point

3-1,0-0Patriot

Florida

1-0,0-0SEC

Army West Point

Florida

Black Knights Show Grit in Loss to Florida

December 02, 2020 | Men's Basketball

Box Score

UNCASVILLE, Conn. – The Army West Point men's basketball team suffered its first loss of the 2020-21 season, falling to Florida in a tightly contested bout, 76-69, on Wednesday at Mohegan Sun Arena.

"Our guys came with the attitude that we wanted to win this basketball game and I'm proud of the way they competed," Head Coach Jimmy Allen said. "I can't tell you how much respect I have for Coach White and the Florida program. Having the chance to compete against a program that has had as much success as they have had and be right there with a chance to win the game says a lot about our guys and where our program is right now. Certainly with the young team that we have, it says a lot about where our program is headed."

Coming off the team's first 3-0 start in five seasons, the Black Knights jumped out to a quick start in the game, taking a 12-2 lead early in the first half. The Gators fought back into the contest, before the sides traded leads throughout the second half. In total, there were 11 lead changes in the game before Florida was able to close out the game in the final minutes of the contest.

"As we go through the season, our ultimate goal is to put ourselves in a position to win a Patriot League Championship," Allen said. "There are certainly a lot of positives that we can take from this game that will help us moving forward."

Three Black Knights reached double-digit points in the contest, with senior Lonnie Grayson leading the way with 13. He added a team-leading eight rebounds. Freshman Jalen Rucker scored eight of Army's first 12 points, finishing with 12 points and six assists.

HIGHLIGHTS AND NOTES:

Three Black Knights reached double-digit points for the third consecutive game.
Army shot 42.9% from the field, marking the first time this season the team shot below 50% for the game.
The Black Knights hit 10 three-pointers in the game, a feat they have reached in three of four contests this season.

HOW IT HAPPENED:
FIRST HALF

Army opened the game with a 12-2 start, with freshman Jalen Rucker scoring 8 points.
Thirteen of Army's first 17 points came from their freshman class.
Army was able to grow the lead to 27-15 before the Gators went on an 8-0 run to cut the lead to four.
The Black Knights kept fighting forward, continuing to rely on their play beyond the arc by going 6-15 from three in the half.
Rucker added to his output by adding five assists and a pair of rebounds in the half.
Army held Florida off the scoreboard down the stretch in the half, as Florida did not score a basket in the final 3:33 of the period. Army took a 39-31 lead into the half.

SECOND HALF

Florida got off to a strong start in the second, cutting the Army lead to 42-38 at the first break of the second.
The Gators took their first lead of the game at the 15:14 mark on a three-pointer from Tyree Appleby.
The Gators padded the lead with a 12-0 run before a Jared Cross three-pointer brought Army back within two and a Jalen Rucker layup pulled Army even.
The teams traded leads throughout the middle part of the half. Senior Nick Finke scored back-to-back baskets inside before finding Lonnie Grayson for a corner three to give Army a 54-52 lead.
After Florida took a six-point lead, Josh Caldwell converted on back-to-back three-point plays to tie the game at 60.
Caldwell scored eight of Army's 10 points during the stretch as Army and Florida traded leads late into the half.