Bucknell University Athletics
Bucknell University
6-10 (2-1PL)
Army
7-9 (1-2PL)
Bucknell Men's Basketball Rallies Past Army, 56-53
1/16/2002 7:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Jan. 16, 2002
LEWISBURG, Pa. - Boakai Lalugba scored 19 of his game-high 25 points in the second half to help Bucknell erase a 10-point halftime deficit and defeat Army 56-53 in a Patriot League men's basketball contest Wednesday night in Davis Gym.
Bucknell (6-10, 2-1 Patriot League) survived shaky free-throw shooting down the stretch and a pair of open 3-point looks from Josh Wilson and Chris Spatola in the final 10 seconds.
Trailing 28-18 at intermission and 39-30 with 12:20 remaining, Bucknell used an 18-7 run to take a 48-46 lead with 4:27 remaining. Lalugba dunked twice during the run and Dan Blankenship completed the surge with a 3-pointer to give the Bison their first lead of the night.
The game was tied twice more at 48 and 50 before Lalugba's layup with 1:57 to go gave Bucknell the lead for good. Lalugba, who was 12-for-16 from the field in the game and 9-for-10 in the second half, banked in a five-footer to make it 54-50 with 45 seconds remaining.
Spatola quickly answered with a long three to make it 54-53. Army (7-9, 1-2) fouled Blankenship with 26 seconds showing, and the Bison guard made the first and missed the second, but teammate Brian Werner corralled the offensive rebound. Blankenship was again fouled and made 1 of 2 free throws with 22 seconds left, giving the Black Knights a final shot to tie.
Wilson's 3-point attempt from the right wing bounced long off the rim, and after a Jonte Harrell offensive rebound, Spatola missed a long three as time expired.
Bucknell shot a torrid 75.0 percent (15-20) from the floor in the second half after a 33.3 percent (9-27) showing in the opening period. During that time, Army was able to use a strong inside game to build an early lead. J.P. Spatola and Charles Woodruff scored 15 of the Cadets' first 20 points, and a 9-0 run gave Army its largest lead of 11 points at 27-16 with 2:25 remaining in the half.
Woodruff led Army with 22 points, while Chris Spatola parlayed four treys into a 16-point night.
Werner added 15 for Bucknell, which committed only 13 turnovers just one game after committing 36 in a loss at Navy. Bucknell was a meager 5-for-16 from the free-throw line, all in the second half, but shot 51.1 percent from the field on the night.
Bucknell, which has trailed at the half in four of its six wins this season, improved to 4-1 at home and 23-4 against Army since 1990-91.
The Bison visit Patriot League newcomer American on Saturday, while Army hosts Lafayette.
