Return to the "POINTER VIEW"January 12, 2001
Return to the "POINTER VIEW"
January 12, 2001
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| Senior Seth Barrett shoots. He finished in double figures with 14 points versus Bethany. Photos by Jim Fox. |
Four Army players scored in double figures, led by 22 each from junior Chris Spatola and freshman Andy Smith, as the home standing Black Knights set an academy scoring record with a 113-88 victory over Bethany at West Point’s Christl Arena Monday night.
The Black Knights (5-7) led by one at halftime, 44-43, but pulled away in the second half by scoring an arena and Patriot League record 69 points and shooting 63.9 percent from the floor after intermission.
The win snapped a three-game losing streak as Army also established a new arena record for free throw attempts, converting 30 of 42 shots from the stripe. Bethany (6-6) was mired in foul trouble all night and four Bison players fouled out. The game featured 59 infractions (32 for Bethany and 27 for Army).
Army broke open a tight contest with a 20-6 run over a span of 5:04 to turn a 57-54 lead into a comfortable 77-60 cushion midway through the second half. To that point, there had been 11 ties and 10 lead changes.
Spatola and classmate Charles Woodruff paced that surge with seven points apiece while Smith
added four points and two assists. Spatola registered 18 of his 22 points in the second half.
Army then continued building on its lead, pushing the advantage to as many as 27 points at 110-83 with 1:13 remaining. Freshman Bill Mohr, seeing his first collegiate action, scored five points in the final two minutes and sent Army into the record books by tipping in a missed shot with 1:28 left for a 107-81 lead. The Black Knights’ previous scoring record came during a 106-84 win over Hobart in the 1993-94 campaign.
The teams’ 201 combined points were also a Christl Arena record, shattering the old mark of 190 set in that same Hobart
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| Junior Chris Spatola (#24) defends his Albany opponent during action Dec. 14. Spatola scored 22 points in the record-breaking scoring effort against Bethany Monday. |
victory.
For Smith, his 22 points were a career-high, bettering his previous best of nine points established against Yale Jan. 3. He made 5 of 6 three-pointers and was 7 of 7 from the foul line. Army shot a season-best 60.3 percent from the field for the game.
Senior Seth Barrett and Woodruff also finished in double digits, scoring 14 and 13 points, respectively, while 16 of the 18 Army players who saw action scored points.
Mike Majzun led the Bison with 30 points off the bench, topping four Bethany players in double figures. Nevada Smith registered 13 points with Todd McGuinness and Scott Johnson adding 11 and 10, respectively.
Army will open Patriot League play Saturday against Colgate at Christl Arena. Game time is 3:15 p.m.
