Jan. 28, 2005
Box Score
EASTON, Pa. (www.lafayette.edu) - The backcourt tandem of Kevin Hamilton and Keith Simmons combined for 40 points as Holy Cross defeated Lafayette, 74-57, in men's basketball on Friday night at Kirby Sports Center.
The Crusaders (14-5, 5-1), who earned their fifth straight win in the Patriot League and sixth in a row overall, led 13-3 with 11:30 left in the first half as Hamilton scored seven points. Holy Cross moved into a first-place tie with Bucknell (14-5, 5-1), which lost at American 68-59.
Andrei Capusan produced a pair of baskets to pare the lead to six, but Hamilton's three-pointer out of the eight-minute media timeout gave Holy Cross an 18-7 advantage. The Crusaders extended their lead to 31-18 at the half.
Holy Cross led by 22 with 8:34 remaining before the Leopards (5-14, 1-5) went on a 14-4 run to pull within 12. Freshmen Paul Cummins and Matt Betley both hit three's, and sophomore Jamaal Douglas made two trifectas in a span of 25 seconds to make the score 62-50. Hamilton and Simmons controlled the tempo the rest of the way and scored eight of the last 12 points to seal the win.
Hamilton finished with 22 points on 8-of-12 shooting and four three's, while Simmons had 18 points and was 6-of-10 from the floor with a pair of triples. John Hurley contributed nine points and seven boards.
Douglas led Lafayette with 14 points and six rebounds. Cummins banged home a trio of three-pointers for nine points and dished out four assists. Capusan and Sean Knitter scored eight each.
Lafayette will host Army on Sunday at 1 p.m. to close the first half of league play. Lehigh downed Army, 63-45, in Bethlehem.
