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EASTON, Pa. ÃÆ'Æ’¢ÃÆ'¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡¬ÃÆ'¢Ã¢â€š¬Ã…â€Å" The Lafayette men's basketball team did all it could on Monday evening to knock off defending Patriot League champion Bucknell, forcing overtime on a buzzer-beater from freshman guard Alex Petrie. But the extra period was handled by the Bison as the Leopards fell by an 80-75 score at Kirby Sports Center.

Zach Thomas' layup at 1:34 to play put the Bison ahead by three entering the final possession with Lafayette needing some magic. Petrie provided just that, somehow finding the bottom of the net over three Bucknell defenders at the buzzer on the left wing to force overtime.

In the overtime period, though, Stephen Brown hit the big shot when it was needed most, drilling a triple of his own from the right wing with 1:15 to go to make it 76-73. Petrie's free-throws with nine seconds left were the lone Leopard points in the final minute as the Bison gradually pulled away and milked the clock, outlasting Lafayette by an 80-75 score.

The loss drops the Maroon and White to 2-2 in Patriot League play, 4-11 overall, while Bucknell improves to 9-8 on the year and 3-1 in conference action. It was the first overtime game of the season for either side.

Petrie led the Leopards with a game-high 26 points, hitting 9-of-21 from the field and 4-of-9 from three-point range. Junior Paulius Zalys followed with 12 points and seven boards, while senior co-captain Matt Klinewski rounded out the double-figure scorers with 10.

Sophomore Myles Cherry followed up his best game of the year with another solid performance, pacing the Maroon and White on the glass with nine boards to go along with nine points, two assists and a steal. The Leopards grabbed a season-high 15 offensive rebounds on the night, but those led to just 11 second-chance points, while the rebounding battle finished in the home favor by a 49-46 margin.

Lafayette went 27-of-73 from the field overall (37.0%), but made just 7-of-30 from three-point range (23.3%). The percentage where it mattered most came in overtime, though, as the Leopards went 0-for-8 in the final frame, compared to 2-of-5 shooting from the Bison with Brown's three the only triple on either side.

Both sides began the game cold, but a Petrie drive-and-finish pushed the Leopards in front at the first media timeout, 6-4. The game remained within a bucket from either side throughout the first 13 minutes, with Thomas' post bucket at the 8:13 mark moving the Bison up by two, 20-18.

Then, Lafayette made its move as a falling away jumper through a foul from Petrie sparked 12 straight for the Maroon and White to open up a 12-point advantage, 34-22, with 4:02 to play in the half. The Bison were able to claw back within seven on a Thomas layup at the buzzer, with the Leopards heading into the halftime break on top, 38-31.

Five straight from Zalys opened the second half on the right foot for the Leopards, but the Bison expectedly responded as nine unanswered forced a timeout at the 15:56 mark with Lafayette's lead at three, 43-40. Lafayette settled in over the next five minutes as the two teams traded buckets to make it 53-51 in favor of the home side at the midway point.

Lafayette moved its lead out to four a couple of times over the next three-minute stretch, but Brown's put-back floater took the game under the eight-minute mark tied at 59. The Bison continued to execute as a Bruce Moore three and a Brown jumper put them in front by four, but a pair from the free-throw line from Cherry cut it back to one with 2:34 to play, 66-65.

From there, Petrie's magic only extended the game time as the Bison fended off the Leopards with a final of 80-75. Next up for the Maroon and White is a midweek battle at Army on Thursday with tip at 12 p.m.