BETHLEHEM, Pa. – The Patriot League men’s basketball regular season concluded on Saturday, setting the matchups for the 2021 PenFed Credit Union Patriot League Men’s Basketball Championship, beginning with first-round action on Wednesday, March 3.
Navy clinched the No. 1 seed in the championship for the first time since the 1996-97 season after sweeping the two-game weekend series against Loyola Maryland and will host the winner of the No. 8 vs. No. 9 first-round game. Colgate is the No. 2 seed and will welcome the winner of the No. 7 vs. No. 10 first-round game. Lafayette sealed the No. 3 seed with its win on Saturday and will play host to No. 6 Bucknell in the quarterfinal round. Army West Point captured the No. 4 seed with a victory over Boston University on Sunday. The Black Knights will welcome American, who earned the No. 5 seed with a weekend sweep of Bucknell. All four quarterfinal-round games will be available on ESPN+.
Defending champion Boston University will be the No. 7 seed and host No. 10 Lehigh, and No. 8 Holy Cross welcomes No. 9 Loyola Maryland in the first round of the championship on Wednesday, March 3. Both games will be available on ESPN+.
For more information on the 2021 PenFed Credit Union Patriot League Men’s Basketball Championship,
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2021 PenFed Credit Union Patriot League Men’s Basketball Tournament Field
No. 1 – Navy (15-2, 12-1 PL (.923), 6-0 South)
No. 2. – Colgate (11-1 PL (.917), 11-1 North)
No. 3. – Lafayette (9-5 PL (.643), 5-1 Central)
No. 4. – Army West Point (11-8, 7-7 PL (.500), 6-6 North)
No. 5. – American (4-5 PL (.444), 2-5 South)
No. 6. – Bucknell (4-6 PL (.400), 4-2 Central)
No. 7. – Boston University (6-10 PL (.375), 3-9 North)
No. 8. – Holy Cross (5-11 PL (.313), 4-8 North)
No. 9 – Loyola Maryland (4-10 PL (.286), 1-5 South)
No. 10 – Lehigh (4-10 (.286), 1-7 Central)
DATE |
MEN’S BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIP | ROUND | COVERAGE |
TIME (all times ET) |
Wednesday, March 3 |
No. 10 Lehigh at No. 7 Boston University | First Round | ESPN+ |
7 p.m. |
Wednesday, March 3 |
No. 9 Loyola Maryland at No. 8 Holy Cross | First Round | ESPN+ |
6 p.m. |
Saturday, March 6 |
Winner of 9/8 at No. 1 Navy | Quarterfinals | ESPN+ |
Noon |
Saturday, March 6 |
Winner of 10/7 at No. 2 Colgate | Quarterfinals | ESPN+ |
TBA |
Saturday, March 6 |
No. 6 Bucknell at No. 3 Lafayette | Quarterfinals | ESPN+ |
2 p.m. |
Saturday, March 6 |
No. 5 American at No. 4 Army West Point | Quarterfinals | ESPN+ |
3 p.m. |
Wednesday, March 10 |
Winner of 9/8/1 vs. Winner of 5/4 | Semifinals | CBSSN |
5:30 p.m./7:30 p.m. |
Wednesday, March 10 |
Winner of 10/7/2 vs. Winner of 6/3 | Semifinals | CBSSN |
5:30 p.m./7:30 p.m. |
Sunday, March 14 |
2021 PenFed Credit Union Championship Game | CBSSN |
Noon |
AT ARMY WEST POINT BLACK KNIGHTS (11-8, 7-7 PL, 6-6 North) 57, BOSTON UNIVERSITY TERRIERS (6-10 PL, 3-9 North) 55
Christl Arena/West Point, N.Y. 3 p.m. (ESPN+)
BOX SCORE
WEST POINT, N.Y. – Senior forward Alex King’s step-back jumper with 1.1 seconds remaining in the game lifted Army West Point to a 57-55 victory over Boston University on Senior Day at Christl Arena to clinch the No. 4 seed and a quarterfinal-round home game in the 2021 PenFed Credit Union Patriot League Men’s Basketball Championship.
*King finished with a game-high 19 points on 6-of-10 shooting from the floor to go along with six rebounds to lead the Black Knights.
*Senior guard Lonnie Grayson contributed nine points, eight rebounds and five assists. Junior guard Josh Caldwell and freshman guard Jalen Rucker also added nine points for Army West Point.
*Trailing by 14 points at the 7:08 mark in the second half, the Terriers went on a 20-6 run, capped by senior guard Javante McCoy’s put-back layup to tie the score at 55 with 11 seconds remaining in the game.
*McCoy led the Terriers with 16 points and nine rebounds. Junior forward Walter Whyte posted a double-double with 13 points and 12 rebounds, while junior guard Jonas Harper added 11 points.
RECAPS:
BOSTON UNIVERSITY |
ARMY WEST POINT
AT AMERICAN EAGLES (4-5 PL, 2-5 South) 81, BUCKNELL BISON (4-6 PL, 4-2 Central) 68
Bender Arena/Washington, D.C. 4 p.m. (ESPN+)
BOX SCORE
WASHINGTON – Senior guard Jamir Harris scored a game-high 24 points to lead American to an 81-68 victory over American on Sunday at Bender Arena. The Eagles clinched the No. 5 seed in the Patriot League Championship with the win.
*Harris connected on 9-of-13 from the floor and 5-of-8 from beyond the arc for his 24 points. He also dished out four assists.
*Senior guard Stacy Beckton Jr. finished with 13 points, six rebounds and two steals, while junior forward Connor Nelson and freshman forward Johnny O’Neil added 12 points apiece for the Eagles.
*Sophomore guard Xander Rice led four Bison in double-figures with 16 points after shooting 7-of-7 from the floor and 2-of-2 from 3-point range.
*Junior guards Andrew Funk and Walter Ellis scored 13 and 12 points, respectively. Senior center Paul Newman chipped in 11 points and seven rebounds for Bucknell, the No. 6 seed in the upcoming Patriot League Championship.
RECAPS:
BUCKNELL |
AMERICAN
AT NAVY MIDSHIPMEN (15-2, 12-1 PL, 7-0 South) 66, LOYOLA MARYLAND GREYHOUNDS (4-10 PL, 1-5 South) 58
Alumni Hall/Annapolis, Md. 4 p.m. (ESPN+)
BOX SCORE
ANNAPOLIS, Md. – Junior guard John Carter Jr. and sophomore forward Daniel Deaver paced the Midshipmen with 16 and 15 points, respectively, to lead Navy to a 66-58 victory against Loyola Maryland to clinch the No. 1 seed in the Patriot League Championship.
*Junior guard Greg Summers added nine points and nine rebounds, helping Navy win the battle on the boards, 32-26.
*The Mids, playing their second-consecutive game without starters Cam Davis and Richard Njoku, received production from a bench unit that outscored the Greyhounds’ bench, 38-11.
*Early in the second half, Loyola Maryland used a 12-0 run, holding the Mids scoreless for more than seven minutes, to close within two points at 39-37, but Navy was able to hold on.
*Sophomore forward Santi Aldama led the Greyhounds with 21 points and six rebounds, while junior guard Jaylin Andrews and sophomore guard Cam Spencer added 11 points apiece.
*Sophomore forward Golden Dike contributed seven points and nine rebounds for Loyola Maryland.
RECAPS:
LOYOLA MARYLAND |
NAVY
LAFAYETTE LEOPARDS (9-5 PL, 5-1 Central) 71, AT LEHIGH MOUNTAIN HAWKS (4-10 PL, 1-7 Central) 70
Stabler Arena/Bethlehem, Pa. 6 p.m. (ESPN+)
BOX SCORE
BETHLEHEM, Pa. – Senior guard Justin Jaworski banked in a short jumper with 15.9 seconds remaining in the game to give Lafayette a 71-70 victory over Lehigh to close the 2020-21 season on Sunday.
*Freshman forward Kyle Jenkins led the Leopards with 16 points and six rebounds, while sophomore forward Neal Quinn added 13 points and seven rebounds.
*Senior guard E.J. Stephens and junior guard Tyrone Perry scored 10 points apiece and Jaworski finished with nine to help Lafayette win three-of-four games against the Mountain Hawks this season.
*Freshman forward Ben Li shot 5-of-7 from the floor and 2-of-3 from deep to lead Lehigh with 13 points.
*Sophomore guard Evan Taylor finished with 12 points, six rebounds, four assists and two steals, while senior guard Marques Wilson added 11 points, five rebounds and six assists for the Mountain Hawks.
RECAPS:
LAFAYETTE |
LEHIGH
2020-21 Patriot League Men’s Basketball Standings (as of 2.28.21)
School |
Division |
Pct. |
Patriot League |
Pct. |
Overall |
Pct. |
NORTH |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Colgate! |
11-1 |
.917 |
11-1 |
.917 |
11-1 |
.917 |
Army West Point |
6-6 |
.500 |
7-7 |
.500 |
11-8 |
.579 |
Holy Cross |
4-8 |
.333 |
5-11 |
.313 |
5-11 |
.313 |
Boston University |
3-9 |
.250 |
6-10 |
.375 |
6-10 |
.375 |
CENTRAL |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Lafayette! |
5-1 |
.833 |
9-5 |
.643 |
9-5 |
.643 |
Bucknell |
4-2 |
.667 |
4-6 |
.400 |
4-6 |
.400 |
Lehigh |
1-7 |
.125 |
4-10 |
.286 |
4-10 |
.286 |
SOUTH |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Navy! |
6-0 |
1.000 |
12-1 |
.923 |
15-2 |
.882 |
American |
2-5 |
.286 |
4-5 |
.444 |
4-5 |
.444 |
Loyola Maryland |
1-5 |
.167 |
4-10 |
.286 |
4-10 |
.286 |
! Clinched divisional No. 1 seed
Full Standings and Tiebreaker Information
ABOUT THE PATRIOT LEAGUE
The Patriot League is in its fourth decade of academic and athletic achievement, continually demonstrating that student-athletes can excel at both academics and athletics without sacrificing high standards. The Patriot League’s athletic success is achieved while its member institutions remain committed to its founding principle of admitting and graduating student-athletes that are academically representative of their class. Participation in athletics at Patriot League institutions is viewed as an important component of a well-rounded education.