Box Score

EASTON, Pa. - Despite trailing by multiple possessions for the majority of the second half, the Lafayette men's basketball team rallied on Saturday afternoon to pull within three with 1.7 seconds remaining against Loyola (3-10, 2-0 PL). Unfortunately, junior Nick Lindner's three-quarter-court heave fell short as time expired and the Leopards (3-10, 0-2 PL) fell for the second time in league play by a final score of 81-78.

"We got off to a poor start. Being down by 11 at the half was hard to come back from," head coach Fran O'Hanlon said. "I was proud of how hard we fought to get back in and we never gave up."

Lindner finished with a game-high 26 points on 9-of-24 shooting from the field, while freshman Paulius Zalys recorded his first career double-double with 10 points and 11 rebounds in defeat. Zalys also added three assists and two blocks in 25 minutes to cap off one of his more impressive performances of the season.

Sophomore Matt Klinewski added 14 points, seven rebounds, two assists and two blocks, and junior Monty Boykins rounded out the double-figure scorers with 11 points on 2-of-4 shooting from beyond the arc. The Leopards outrebounded an opponent for just the second time this season, holding a 38-37 edge on the glass and kept turnovers to a minimum, coughing it up just seven times on the afternoon.

The game started in typical Patriot League fashion with both sides working hard for every bucket. Klinewski's put-back bucket in transition gave the Leopards an early 9-8 lead after the opening five minutes of action.

The Hounds scored 10 of the next 12 points over the ensuing five-minute stretch to take an 18-11 lead midway through the opening half. The Leopards were without senior Bryce Scott for a brief stretch due to an apparent shoulder injury, but he returned to action at the nine-minute mark, hitting his first shot back in the game to make it 23-14 Loyola with 8:28 to play in the half.

Five straight from Lindner, including a step-back jumper at the 6:13 mark, brought Lafayette back within four, at 23-19. However, another run, this time 8-2 from Loyola, pushed the edge back to nine at 30-21 with five minutes left in the opening stanza and that momentum carried through the remainder of the half, moving the game into the break with the Hounds on top by a 42-31 margin.

The second half began strong for the Maroon and White as the Leopards cut to as close as seven, but Loyola had every answer to what looked like the makings of a Lafayette run early, holding a 55-44 lead with 13:24 remaining. Scott tried to go early in the second stanza, but the shoulder didn't hold up and the Leopards were without him for the remainder of the game.

Coming out of the under-12 media timeout, a pair of Lafayette buckets cut the edge to six at 57-51 with 10:30 remaining. However, five back from the Hounds, including an and-one finish from Laster, extended the advantage to 11 again, 62-51, with 9:25 to play.

The lead ballooned to as many as 14, but a triple from Zalys at the 6:40 mark forced a Loyola timeout with the lead back at nine, 65-56. Yet again, Loyola responded, with Laster finishing through another foul to push the edge to 15, 71-56, with five minutes left.

The Hounds held a comfortable edge for much of the stretch run, but a late Lafayette rally, capped by a Lindner drive-and-finish, made it a five-point game at 78-73 with 22.5 seconds remaining. The Leopards continued to chip away as Lindner again found his way to the rim with less than five seconds to play to cut the edge to two, 80-78.

Following 1-of-2 at the line from Tyler Hubbard, the Leopards inbounded the ball down the left side with 1.7 seconds remaining. Lindner's shot was off the mark, though, and Lafayette fell by an 81-78 final.

Next up for the Maroon and White is a trip to West Point, N.Y. on Wednesday for a meeting with Army West Point at 7 p.m.