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EASTON, Pa. – Senior Zach Rufer tallied a career-high 16 points and the Lafayette defense held Holy Cross to 52 points, the lowest output since a 77-50 victory over Robert Morris in the first game of the 2014-15 season, as the Leopards picked up their second Patriot League win by a 65-52 margin on Wednesday evening at Kirby Sports Center.

“I thought we got off to a good start defensively, but didn’t end the first half the way we would’ve liked,” head coach Fran O’Hanlon said. “But the second half, we took better care of the basketball with only four turnovers and that’s the reason we won the game.”

Rufer was the catalyst for the Lafayette offense all night, going 5-of-9 from the floor and 4-of-8 from three-point range. The senior also ripped down seven rebounds to tie a career-high on the glass and add to his three-assist, two-steal stat line.

“Bryce is one of our best offensive players, so people have to step up and make shots in his place,” Rufer said. “I’ve found myself with a few more minutes over the last couple of games and I’m trying to make the most of it.”

The Leopards (5-11, 2-3 PL) played their third straight game without senior captain Bryce Scott, who remains day-to-day with a shoulder injury. The Maroon and White stood up in his place on Wednesday, though, as junior co-captain Nick Lindner, freshman Paulius Zalys and sophomore Matt Klinewski joined Rufer in double figures with 13, 11 and 11 points, respectively on the night.

Lafayette shot 22-for-48 from the floor (45.8%) and went 10-for-25 from three (40.0%). The Leopards held Holy Cross (7-9, 2-3 PL) to 18-of-56 shooting (32.1%) and the Crusaders made just five of their 27 attempts from beyond the arc (18.5%). Rebounding was relatively even with Holy Cross holding a slight 34-32 edge, while Lafayette assisted 17 times on 22 made field goals for an efficient performance.

The game started sloppy for the Maroon and White as the first three possessions consisted of a pair of turnovers and an air ball. That being said, the Leopards locked down defensively early, trailing by just a 5-0 score after the first three minutes.

Klinewski got the Leopards on the board with a jumper from the left elbow at the 16:20 mark, ending an 8-0 run by the Crusaders to open the game. Rufer answered on the next possession with a triple as Lafayette began to settle in, down 8-5.

The two sides traded buckets over the next five minutes as a Zalys dunk in transition right before the under-12 media timeout knotted the game at 11 apiece. A Rufer triple at the nine-minute mark capped off a seven-point spurt for the Leopards that moved them in front by an 18-13 margin midway through the half.

Lafayette caught fire toward the latter stages of the half as another run, this time 9-2, stretched the advantage to 12 at 27-15 with five minutes to play. However, a 6-0 run in the final 2:30 took the game into the break with the Maroon and White ahead by just five, 31-26.

The teams traded empty possessions to open the first four minutes of the second stanza, but a great cross-court find from sophomore Eric Stafford found Rufer in the left corner, who drained the triple to put the Leopards up 36-29. That shot sparked an 8-0 spurt as Lindner’s triple forced a Holy Cross timeout at the 14:26 mark with Lafayette on top, 41-29.

The Maroon and White extended their edge over the next four minutes as Lindner’s third triple helped the Leopards match their biggest lead to that point, up 47-32 with 11:52 to play. Holy Cross cut back to within 10 a couple of times over the next three minutes and a follow in transition from Robert Champion made the lead single digits at 52-44 with eight minutes left.

Neither team shifted momentum to their bench over the next stretch as the game went under the four-minute mark with Lafayette still up eight, 58-50. A comeback never came from the visiting side through the final minutes as Lafayette sealed its second Patriot League victory with a final score of 65-52.

The Leopards look to begin their first winning streak of the league season on Saturday, traveling to Annapolis, Md. to battle with second-place Navy at 7 p.m.