WASHINGTON, D.C. – Senior Myles Cherry posted his ninth career double-double with 13 points and 10 rebounds, but saw the Leopards fall behind a hot-shooting American team on Wednesday night.
 
The Eagles shot 58 percent from the floor in the 79-59 final at Bender Arena. Cherry (13) joined Lukas Jarrett (17) and Leo O'Boyle (11) in double figures for the Leopards.
 
American's Sa'eed Nelson was part of the efficient scoring effort, converting on 14-of-18 attempts from the floor. He hit for 30 points on the night when he became the school's career scoring leader.
 
Sparked by buckets from five different players, Lafayette came out of the gate with energy, sprinting to a 12-6 lead by the first media timeout (13:54).

American responded by ripping off 15 straight points to lead 21-12 with nine minutes left in the opening stanza. Cherry's three from the top of the arc stopped the American run to make it 21-15.
 
The hosts (15-13, 11-6) stretched that lead to 38-25 by halftime, led by 16 points from Nelson (8-of-10) and nine from Connor Nelson. O'Boyle paced the Leopards in the first half with nine points on a pair of threes, but missed much of the second half in foul trouble.
 
After the intermission, the closest the Leopards could come was 13 points with 8:45 left in the game. Cherry corralled an offensive rebound and kicked it out to Jarrett at the top of the arc where he converted and trimmed the margin to 62-49. That bucket prompted an American timeout.
 
An 8-0 AU run over the next two minutes sealed the final. That spurt included five points from C. Nelson who finished the game with 16 points.
 
For the game, Lafayette shot 41 percent overall and 32 percent from beyond the arc. On the glass, the Leopards held a 31-25 advantage led by 10 boards from Cherry and six from Jarrett. The Leopards were hampered by 18 turnovers that lead to 27 AU points.
 
Lafayette (17-11, 9-8) next hosts Navy at 2 p.m. on Saturday. Prior to the game, seniors Cal Reichwein, Kyle Stout, Cherry and Jarrett will be honored on Senior Day.