Army West Point Athletics
Army West Point
15-11,9-5Patriot
Navy
10-17,7-7Patriot
Men’s Basketball Sees Narrow Loss in Star Series Game Against Navy
February 15, 2025 | Men's Basketball
ANNAPOLIS, Md. — Army West Point men's basketball (15-11, 9-5) saw its second loss of the season to the Navy Midshipmen (10-17, 7-7), 54-61.
The Black Knights finished the game shooting 38 percent from the floor and 28.6 percent from the three-point line. The Midshipmen finished the game shooting 39.2 percent from the floor and 27.8 from the three-point line.
Similar to their first matchup, rebounding played a huge role in the game, but not in the Black Knights' favor. Army saw a 40-31 overall rebounding deficit, with having 15 offensive boards to Army's nine. The Midshipmen were also able to capitalize on their second chances, scoring 19 second-chance points while the Black Knights only had three second-chance points.
Jalen Rucker led the Black Knights with 18 points while adding three rebounds, two assists and one steal.
AJ Allenspach neared a double-double, scoring 14 points and grabbing a team-high eight rebounds. Ryan Curry rounded out the Army double-digit scorers with 10 points and seven rebounds.
How It Happened
The Black Knights gained an early lead to start the first half. Josh Scovens started scoring with a layup, then Jalen Rucker followed with a jumper and a three-pointer on back-to-back possession to take an early four-point lead at 7-3 with 16:23 on the clock.
Over the next four minutes, the Midshipmen outscored Army 9-5, knotting the game at 12-12 with twelve minutes left in the Firat half. Isaiah Caldwell scored a three-pointer for his first and only points of the game, and Jalen Rucker added another layup.
Army would get outscored by Navy 6-5 over the next four minutes, with AJ Allenspach scoring three of the five points and Jalen Rucker adding two points.
Then starting at the 7:57 mark of the first half, the Black Knights went on an 8-3 run to take the lead back from Navy. The run was led by AJ Allenspach with five points in that stretch and go ahead three-pointer from Josh Scovens to make it a 25-21 game with 3:39 left in the first half.
Jalen Rucker would score Army's three points in the last minutes of the first half, while Navy scored five points, making it a 28-26 game in Army's favor heading into the locker room.
Army came out of the locker room with some steam, outscoring Navy in the first five minutes of the game 13-8. Josh Scovens started the run with a pair of free throws, then Jalen Rucker added a three-point play. Jalen Rucker hit a three-pointer Josh Scovens hit a layup and Ryan Curry sank a three-pointer to give Army its biggest lead of the day at 41-34 with 15:43 left.
Then over the next seven minutes, Navy went on a 15-0 run to take back the lead and make it an eight-point lead with 7:40 on the clock.
Army would respond quickly, going on an 11-2 run to take back the lead with 4:27 left in the game. The run started with five straight points from Ryan Curry. Then AJ Allenspach added a layup. Ryan Curry added another jumper and AJ Allenspach added another layup to help Army retake the lead.
The Midshipmen scored four points following the run, making it a 55-52 game in Navy's favor. Then AJ Allenspach hit two free throws, making it a 54-55 game with one minute left in the game.
The Black Knights would foul Navy during the single bonus, but off of a missed first free throw, were unable to get the rebound and fouled, sending Navy back to the free throw line. Navy would hit six free throws in the final minute, with Army unable to score on the other side, ultimately causing Army to fall to Navy.
Up Next
The Black Knights return home to Christl Arena on Wednesday for a rematch against the American Eagles.
In their last matchup, Army suffered a 68-71 loss in Washington D.C. against American. The Black Knights came back from a 17-point second-half deficit, but at the end, came up just short.
The game is slated for a 6 p.m. Wednesday tip-off, with the matchup streaming on ESPN+ and the Varsity Network.
