Nov. 28, 2006
Box Score
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EASTON, Pa. - (www.lafayette.edu) - Kyle Koncz and Luke Owings each scored 12 points for Princeton, as the Tigers dealt Lafayette a 44-42 defeat on Tuesday evening at Kirby Sports Center. Junior forward Matt Betley led the Leopards for the fourth straight game with 11 points, while pulling down seven rebounds.
An energized Lafayette squad took the floor and jumped out to a quick 7-0 lead on its homecourt. The Tigers quickly answered with two three-pointers from Owings and Koncz . However, a Betley steal and lay-up coupled with a three-pointer from the corner jumped the Leopard lead back to 20-14 with 2:04 left in the first half. Two Bilal Abdullah free throws handed Lafayette a slim 22-19 lead at halftime.
Just as Lafayette began the game, the Tigers came charging out of the locker room. A 10-0 run to start the second half gave Princeton a 29-22 lead going into the first media timeout of the second stanza. Tiger center Justin Conway pushed the lead to nine with 15:42 remaining.
The game continued with each team taking part in a quick run. However, a Lincoln Gunn three-pointer followed by an Owings triple and free throw stretched the Tiger lead back to nine at 39-30 with 9:03 remaining.
The Leopards hung tough and slowly began to close the Princeton gap. A 12-4 Lafayette run, capped by a Betley three-point play trimmed the Princeton lead to two with 55 seconds left. A forced three-pointer as the shot clock expired was rebounded by senior tri-captain Marcus Harley and gave head coach Fran O'Hanlon a timeout to set up the final play.
With the clock under 10 seconds, sophomore guard Andrew Brown drove down the lane and put up an off-balance shot. The ball came off the rim and led to a scramble in front of the Leopard basket as time expired to give Princeton the two point victory.
"I thought we played well for 35 minutes of the game," O'Hanlon said. "Overall, we did a very good job against a very good basketball team, but at this point we're not looking for moral victories. We want to get in close games and win those games."
The Leopards outrebounded their first opponent this season, holding a 26-20 margin on the boards.
Princeton drilled nine three-pointers while the Leopards only shot 22 percent (4-of-18) from behind the arc.
Lafayette will take the rest of the week to regroup and turn its focus to a Saturday matinee game at St. Peter's. Tip-off is scheduled 2 p.m. at the Yanitelli Center.
