OPENING TIP
Lafayette looks to break its three-game losing streak against Holy Cross and start a series win streak against the squad it defeated in the First Round of the Patriot League Tournament last season. On March 4, 2025, the Leopards secured a 69-68 win over the Crusaders thanks to current sophomore Caleb Williams' pair of free throws with four seconds on the clock. 

Last time out, freshman Christian Humphrey-Rembert netted a career-high 21 points in a 76-69 loss to Bucknell on Wednesday evening in Sojka Pavilion. Mark Butler (15), Caleb Williams (11) and Andrew Phillips (10) also finished in double figures as the team put together a 43 percent performance from the floor. Pat Curtin led three opponents in double figures with 17 points, six rebounds and four assists as Bucknell shot 54 percent beyond the arc and 50 percent from the floor.  The hosts outrebounded Lafayette 34-26.

Sophomore guard Caleb Williams is ranked fifth in the Patriot League at 15.9 points per game. He has scored 10+ points in every game (except at Navy on Jan. 10) in 2025-26 and has netted 20+ points against foes such as Texas, Mercyhurst, Penn, Georgia Tech and Loyola Md. In 12 games, he has made at least three 3-pointers. The Economics major recorded a career-high six buckets from long distance on Dec. 5 against the Lakers.

Lafayette recently released its promotional calendar for the remainder of the Patriot League slate: Jan. 26 - Coaches vs. Cancer's Suits & Sneakers Week and Go Gold for Childhood Cancer, Feb. 11 - Game Day Zero Waste Challenge, Feb. 14 - Senior Gift Half-Court Shot Raffle and Alumni Day, Feb. 28 - Senior Day.

Next up, the Maroon and White travel to Boston U. on Wednesday at 6 p.m. for the second matchup in 14 days.

THE MATCHUP
Holy Cross finished the 2024-25 regular season with an 13-19 (5-13 PL) record. The Crusaders, selected to finish ninth in the conference during the preseason poll, are off to their best start in Patriot League play since 2016-17 following an 82-75 win against Army on Wednesday. The opposing squad looks to craft its first win in Easton since March 5, 2019 as Lafayette has won 12 of the last 17 meetings.

The Crusaders return nine letterwinners, including three starters. Sophomore guard Tyler Boston is one of three players averaging double figures in scoring (13.8 ppg) while adding 3.7 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game.

The 19th head coach in the history of Holy Cross men's basketball, Dave Paulsen, is in his 30th year as a collegiate head coach after stops at St. Lawrence, Williams, Le Moyne, George Mason and Bucknell since 1994-95. A three-time Patriot League Coach of the Year and two-time Division III National Coach of the Year, he has won four Patriot League regular season titles, two Patriot League Tournament titles and the 2003 NCAA Division III national championship, while leading his teams to eight NCAA Tournament appearances.

FAMILIAR FOES
Lafayette has played 525 games against current Patriot League members. In conference play, the Leopards are 222-303 in the regular season and 26-32 in the Patriot League Tournament, including a 13-5 home record. In the previous season's conference tournament, No. 7 Lafayette was eliminated by second-seeded American, 71-69, in the quarterfinal round on March 6, 2025.

STARS ACROSS THE BOARD
Leopard freshman Christian Humphrey-Rembert is ranked fifth in the conference for his 106 rebounds. The Grand Rapids, Mich. native places second for defensive rebounds per game (4.94) and sixth for total rebounds per game (5.9).

ADMIRABLE ASSISTS
Junior Mark Butler leads the Patriot League and ranks 17th in the country with his 3.48 assist/turnover ratio. Butler, a Philadelphia, Pa. native, has dished 73 assists and kept to 21 turnovers in 2025-26. In the conference, he is sixth for his dimes per game (4.1) and fourth for his minutes per game (33:18). Butler recorded a career-high eight assists at Georgia Tech on Dec. 20.

SOPHOMORE SURGE
Caleb Williams is in the top 10 in the Patriot League in 14 categories: assist/turnover ratio (8th, 1.49), assists (9th, 58), assists per game (9th, 3.2), field goal attempts (2nd, 228), field goals (10th, 89), free throw percentage (3rd, 87.7), free throws (7th, 57), minutes per game (8th, 32:20), points (4th, 286), points per game (5th, 15.9), three point attempts (1st, 134), three point percentage (3rd, 38.1), three pointers per game (3rd, 2.83) and total three point FGM (2nd, 51).

CONSISTENCY IN THE FIVE
Lafayette has shown lineup stability, using just three starting combinations this season after opening the year with the same group in each of its first five games. Mark Butler, Andrew Phillips and Christian Humphrey-Rembert have started in all of the contests, while Caleb Williams and Shareef Jackson have each missed one game.

DOUBLE TROUBLE
Shareef Jackson and Christian Humphrey-Rembert earned their first collegiate double-doubles on Nov. 29 in the 55-37 win versus Ball State. Jackson recorded a team-high 11 points and 14 rebounds in addition to making two blocks. Humphrey-Rembert added 10 points and 10 rebounds.

Andrew Phillips paced the Leopards at Stonehill on Nov. 21 with the squad's first double-double of the season. He secured a season-high 22 points and 10 rebounds in the final-minute 77-74 loss. The junior shot 7-of-19 from the floor in addition to three 3-pointers and five free throws. 

PETTIT'S LARCENY
In non-conference play, senior guard Ryan Pettit had 14 steals through nine games before he was sidelined due to injury. The Westfield, N.J. native ranked sixth in the conference for steals per game (1.56) in December and he made a career-high five heists against Ball State on Nov. 29.

INJURY REPORT
Freshman Beckett Currie suffered a broken left scaphoid during preseason preparations and had season-ending surgery to repair it. Malik Rasul continues to be sidelined due to injury (arm). Ashton Wallace did not travel to the Bucknell game due to a shoulder injury.

A TRUSTWORTHY DUO
Ryan Pettit is providing senior leadership for the Leopards in his second consecutive year as a captain, aided by junior Mark Butler. 

FRESH FLOORING
Kirby Sports Center, the Leopards' home arena, has seen major upgrades over the past year. During the summer, the court was completely overhauled and redesigned. It now features a prominent Leopard head logo as well as a maroon Leopard print border. A state-of-the art Daktronics control and video display system can now be seen above center court, showcasing promotional team videos and updated branding to enhance the fan experience. 

CONTINUED ACADEMIC PROWESS
Lafayette's athletic programs stood out among the nation's best on Nov. 19 in the NCAA's Division I graduation success rate (GSR) release. Lafayette boasted a third-best overall mark (97 percent) based on the 19 sports measured while 16 of the Leopards' teams achieved a graduation success rate of 100 percent, including men's basketball. As a conference, the Patriot League recorded a 94 – above the national average of 90. Institutionally, Colgate stood out at 98, followed by Lafayette, Boston U., Bucknell and Holy Cross (97). Lehigh and Loyola Maryland trailed them (96) with Navy (94), American (93) and Army (91) rounding out the group. Lafayette was in a group of 25 schools, including Brown, Dartmouth and Stanford, which featured a score of 97.

PRESEASON POLL
Lafayette was selected to finish seventh in the Patriot League preseason poll with 36 votes. Navy captured the top spot (79 points, seven first-place votes), followed by Boston U. (73, 2), Colgate (64, 1), American (47), Bucknell (44), Loyola Maryland (39), Lehigh (30), Holy Cross (23) and Army (15).

BACK ON THE PROWL
The Leopards return eight players from last season, four of whom saw significant game time. Lafayette concluded 2024-25 with a 13-20 (7-11 PL) overall record, advancing to the Patriot League Tournament's quarterfinal for the second year in a row. The Maroon and White lost five players to graduation and one player to the transfer portal. 

NIGERIAN PRIDE
On July 30, Folabomi Fayemi was named to Nigeria's 17-man provisional roster for the senior men's national team, D'Tigers, ahead of the 2025 International Basketball Federation (FIBA) AfroBasket tournament. The Houston, Texas native practiced in a week-long training camp and had two friendly games leading up to the showdown in Luanda, Angola from Aug. 12-24. The D'Tigers were in Group B alongside Madagascar, defending champions Tunisia and Cameroon. The sophomore guard is studying Economics on College Hill and played in 11 games as a rookie.

HOMEWARD BOUND
On Aug. 26, EJ Stephens '21 was announced as the Director of Basketball Operations for 2025-26. Stephens competed in over 103 contests while wearing the Maroon and White, totaling 1,017 points, 307 rebounds and 175 assists in his career. Following his senior season as a co-captain, he earned Second Team All-Patriot League laurels, a NABC All-District 13 Second Team nod and three Lafayette Dean's List awards. The Psychology major was also chosen as the Oaks Leadership "Leader of Distinction." To this day, Stephens ranks 11th in the conference for his 90.4 free throw percentage. 

This past summer, he was a part of the 2025 NBL1 roster for the Newcastle Falcons alongside O'Boyle and Myles Cherry '20. The 6'3 guard was a dynamic scorer who used his graduate year at Minnesota. The Plantation, Fla. native spent the 2023-24 pro season with the Cheshire Phoenix in England's SLB (formerly BBL).

ALUMNI IN THE PROS
On July 1, 2025, recent graduate and the 2024-25 Patriot League Defensive Player of the Year Justin Vander Baan '25 was named to the Boras Basket program in Sweden's SBL Herr league. He earned a Player of the Match accolade on Oct. 24 for his efforts in a 118-83 win over competitor Jamtland. With Lafayette last January, he led the country in blocks per game (3.14) and ranked seventh for total blocks (44).

Former Leopard captain and 1,000-point scorer Leo O'Boyle '23 is currently playing in the Belgian and Dutch BNXT League with the LWD Basket Leeuwarden for the 2025-26 season. On Oct. 12, he put up 28 points, featuring six 3's, against foe Heroes Den Bosch. O'Boyle previously re-signed with the Newcastle Falcons for summer 2025 after averaging 17.8 points, 6.3 rebounds and 1.9 assists per game last year in Australia. The Scranton, Pa. native also played his graduate season for Penn State and had a stint in Pully-Lausanne, Switzerland. On Jan. 15, 2024, he scored a globe-high 41 points and grabbed 10 rebounds for the Foxes in a 106-98 loss in the Swiss League.

LAFAYETTE ON ESPN+
A reminder that the Patriot League is paired with ESPN and you will be able to find all Lafayette games on ESPN+ with the same high quality broadcast you've come to expect. ESPN+ is a subscription-based service that offers monthly and yearly packages. The Jan. 26 battle versus Bucknell is set to be exclusively televised live on CBS Sports Network at 7 p.m. and will serve as the Leopards' "Coaches vs. Cancer - Suits and Sneakers" game. It is also a doubleheader night with Lafayette women's basketball, which starts at 4:30 p.m.