HAMILTON, N.Y. – Two of the hottest teams in the Patriot League went toe-to-toe Monday night and the Raiders made a statement for the second half of the Patriot League season.
The Raiders extended their league-best win streak to four games by snapping Holy Cross' three-game win streak with an 87-60 thrashing Monday night here at Cotterell Court.
The win marked the third straight time Colgate eclipsed 80 points and all four victories during the current streak have been by double digits. It's been a different leading scorer in each of those games and Monday night was no different with
Keegan Records leading four in double figures.
Records finished just shy of a double-double with 16 points and eight rebounds.
Ryan Moffatt and
Nelly Cummings each scored 14 points and
Jack Ferguson 12. Seven Raiders scored at least six points on the night.
Moffatt continued to have the hot hand, connecting on 4-of-5 from the perimeter. Colgate shot 58% (34-of-59) from the field and 57% (13-of-23) from deep, and finished the night with 24 assists on 34 made field goals.
Both teams got off to a sluggish start before warming up through the middle stages. It was tied 14-14 when
Oliver Lynch-Daniels hit back-to-back 3-pointers and Ferguson swished a transition trey to give Colgate a 27-18 edge.
Holy Cross' Kyrell Luc knocked down a 3-pointer to end the drought and he shined for the Crusaders with 16 points in the first half. It turned into 3-point shooting barrage down the stretch, with Moffatt swishing a pair of his own and Colgate kept its distance.
After the 14-14 tie, Colgate outscored the Crusaders 33-16 over the final 12 minutes to lead 47-30 at intermission. The Raiders made Holy Cross pay for mistakes, turning eight Crusader turnovers into 16 points.
Richardson set the tone in the second half with a trey on the first possession and Colgate opened with a 17-8 run. Moffatt caught fire, then Records took over inside, and the Raiders were well in control 69-40 less than nine minutes into the frame.
Colgate established a 30-point lead 73-43 when Ferguson beat the shot clock with a turnaround jumper from the baseline. Key minutes from reserves down the stretch carried the Raiders to their fourth straight win.
COACH LANGEL REACHES MILESTONE
With Monday's win, Head Coach
Matt Langel earned his 100th Patriot League victory and 165th overall win at the helm.
FROM THE SOURCE
Head Coach Matt Langel
On Holy Cross:
"I have a lot of respect for Coach Nelson and their program – especially with what they've accomplished in their last three games to beat two of the teams that we haven't been able to beat. Our guys recognized that there were two hot teams on the court and there was only going to be one after Monday night. We were locked into the game plan on the defensive end, shared the ball really well offensively, and stepped up to finish some plays that really helped us tonight."
On continuing to improve:
"We've got to win the possession battle. It's no secret in coaching. We have to clean up some of our turnovers. We're a little careless and that's led to easy points for the opposition. It's a double-edged sword because we play with freedom but we can't give away the careless ones that will bite us in a close game and put too much pressure on the defense."
Looking ahead to Lehigh:
"Lehigh is a really talented team. They've got good players that can score and hurt you in a lot of ways. In addition to taking care of the basketball on the offensive end, we've got our hands full on the defensive end. We have to keep getting better and it will be a great test for us Wednesday night."
UP NEXT
Colgate (12-11, 8-2 Patriot) put its four-game win streak to the test Wednesday when the Raiders host Lehigh at Cotterell Court. Tipoff is 7 p.m., with ESPN+ carrying the livestream.
