OPENING TIP
* Lafayette makes its first Patriot League Tournament Semifinal appearance since 2015 on Sunday, battling top-seed and regular-season champion Colgate in Hamilton. The Leopards are 7-5 all-time in the semifinal round and 2-10 all-time against the top seed in tournament play.
* Head coach Fran O'Hanlon holds the Patriot League record for tournament games coach (Sunday will be his 44th) and tournament wins (22).
* The winner of Sunday's clash in Hamilton will move on to face either Bucknell or Boston U. in the Patriot League Championship on Wednesday at a time and location to be determined. 

LAST TIME OUT
Lafayette never trailed in the Patriot League Tournament Quarterfinals at Army on Thursday evening, using a balanced attack offensively and seven blocks on the defensive end to knock off the Black Knights by a 73-68 score and advance to the semifinal round for the first time since 2014-15.

The Maroon and White were determined from the opening tip, jumping out to an 11-5 lead early and carrying that to a 34-30 advantage at the break. Lafayette only extended its lead at the start of the second half, ballooning as high as 18 with 10 minutes left, and held on at the end at the foul line to keep its season alive.

Freshman Leo O'Boyle continued his stretch of stellar play with a team-high 20 points on the night on 6-of-8 shooting and 4-of-5 from beyond the arc. Junior E.J. Stephens hit a number of tough midrange jumpers to finish with 14 points and senior co-captain Lukas Jarrett added 13 on 6-of-8 from the foul line.

Defensively, the seven blocks came from four different sources as Jarrett, Stephens and junior Dylan Hastings registered two apiece and freshman Neal Quinn added one. O'Boyle and sophomore Tyrone Perry added two steals each as well.

With Army the only team to sweep the Leopards in the regular season, Lafayette now boasts at least one victory against every Patriot League team in 2019-20. Its overall record improves to 19-11, while Army finishes at 15-15.

LAST MEETING
Lafayette used production from everywhere in Hamilton, N.Y. on Jan. 29, registering five double-figure scorers, including a double-double from senior co-captain Myles Cherry, to knock off defending champion and preseason Patriot League favorite Colgate for the second time this season, 80-78.

The Leopards handed the Raiders two of their four losses of the conference campaign, dropping a team that at the time was ranked 15th in the College Insider Mid-Major Top 25. Lafayette also ended Colgate's 16-game home winning streak, the seventh-longest in the nation.

An offensive first half saw the Leopards enter the halftime break with a 43-40 advantage on 10 points apiece from freshman Leo O'Boyle and junior co-captain Justin Jaworski. Colgate took over the lead five minutes into the second stanza and it went back-and-forth down the stretch, entering the final minute tied at 78-78.

Out of a timeout, senior co-captain Lukas Jarrett found Cherry on a high-low play for the final bucket of the contest. The Leopards locked down defensively, seeing rim-outs on layup opportunities for Colgate's Jordan Burns and Rapolas Ivanauskas close it out.

Cherry's 13 points and 14 rebounds powered a balanced attack for the Maroon and White. Junior E.J. Stephens finished with 17 points, while Jaworski, sophomore Tyrone Perry and O'Boyle added 15, 14 and 12 points, respectively. 

CLUTCH TIME FOR COACH O
With the win over American on March 11, 2015, Lafayette head coach Fran O'Hanlon passed Pat Flannery (Bucknell, 1995-2008) for the top spot in all-time tournament wins with 20. O'Hanlon currently sits at 22 tournament victories and also holds the record for most tournament games coached at 44. 

SEMIFINAL SUCCESS
Though the Leopards haven't been to the semifinal round in the Patriot League Tournament since the 2014-15 championship run, they have had success in this round in the past, holding a 7-5 record in semifinal games in their history. Lafayette has won its last two semifinal matchups against Bucknell in 2014-15 and Lehigh in 2012-13 and advanced to the championship game in four its last five semifinal appearances.  The Leopards are 2-10 against the top seed in the Patriot League Tournament, but one of those two came most recently, knocking off Bucknell in Lewisburg in 2015 on the way to a title. 

THE SKINNY ON THE RAIDERS
Colgate has been the class of the Patriot League each of the last two seasons as the defending champions followed up with a regular-season championship this winter, going 24-8 overall and 14-4 in conference action. Head coach Matt Langel, who was named the Patriot League Coach of the Year for the second straight season, is in his ninth year in Hamilton, carrying a 128-150 overall record into Sunday's tilt.

The Raiders are as balanced as possible with all five starters averaging double-figure scoring. Colgate boasts three All-Patriot League selections in first-teamers Jordan Burns and Will Rayman, and second-team selection Rapolas Ivanauskas. Rayman, the league's Defensive Player of the Year, averages 12.7 points per night and adds a league-leading 8.9 rebounds per contest. Burns leads the attack at 15.6 points per game, Ivanauskas adds 13.2 per night and Nelly Cummings and Tucker Richardson chip in 11.2 and 10.6 per game, respectively.

A WINNING CAMPAIGN
Lafayette's victory over Holy Cross on Feb. 15 gave the Maroon and White their 16th win of the 2019-20 season, securing a winning season. The Leopards have not recorded a winning record since their championship run in 2014-15. Currently at 19-11 overall, a win at Colgate on Sunday would give Lafayette its fifth 20-win season in program history. 

The victory over Navy on Feb. 29 also gave Lafayette a 10-win season in conference play, its first winning record in the league since the 2012-13 campaign when it finished 10-4, advancing to the Patriot League title game.