EASTON, Pa. - American used a 50 percent outing from beyond the arc to down Lafayette, 75-61, on Sunday afternoon at Kirby Sports Center.

Mark Butler scored a team-high 17 points and matched his career-high for assists with eight. Shareef Jackson (15) and Ryan Pettit (13) also finished in double figures in scoring. Lafayette was without leading scorer Caleb Williams for the majority of the game.

In the first half, American hit 5-of-9 from beyond the arc to claim an 18-11 advantage by 11:41. By the seven-minute mark, Lafayette's Shareef Jackson powered the squad's 14-3 run with six points, overtaking the lead 25-21. Pettit contributed four points as the Leopards netted 7-of-9 from the floor.

American caught back up over the next four minutes, using four points apiece by Greg Jones and Madden Collins to tie the game 29-29 with 2:11 left in the half. Shots did not fall for the Leopards in the final two minutes in a 1-for-4 effort from the floor. The Eagles' Julen Iturbe sank a 3-pointer at 1:23 to precede the opponent's 34-31 halftime lead.

American continued its offensive advance at the start of the second session, jumping out to an 11-point lead, 45-34, by 15:35. Geoff Sprouse posted nine points in the spurt, including a pair of 3-pointers to open the half.

A 16-8 stretch for the Leopards brought the gap down to three, 53-50, by the 10-minute mark. Six Leopards supplied the 7-of-9 outing from the floor.

Sprouse and Iturbe knocked down back-to-back 3-pointers to break away to a 59-50 advantage with 7:14 on the clock. The Eagles kept out of reach in the final minutes with five points from Matt Mayock, which Lafayette's Butler attempted to combat with seven. Sprouse added a 3-pointer (2:58) and a jumper (0:51) to close out the contest.

American was hot from 3-point range with 13-for-26 overall, led by Sprouse's eight 3-pointers for a 28-point game. He also connected on 10-of-13 from the floor and grabbed four rebounds, dished four assists and made three steals. The Eagles out-rebounded the Leopards 31-25 and had 12 points off turnovers compared to two from the hosts.

Next up, the Leopards travel to face Colgate on Wednesday with a 7 p.m. tip-off.


For the latest on the Lafayette College men's basketball program, follow the Leopards on Twitter @LafayetteMBB and Instagram @lafayettembb.