HAMILTON – Elijah Stephens connected on a step-back pull-up jumper with 2.4 seconds left to snap Colgate's 12-game winning streak, 66-64, on Sunday afternoon at Cotterell Court.
American found a 12-0 run early in the second half and led by 11 after a 3-pointer from Lorenzo Donadio made it 60-49 with 8:20 to go.
The Raiders immediately shot back with five unanswered and made a run with support from the home crowd. Ryan Moffatt and Keegan Records were key in the late charge, plus a 3-pointer from Jalen Cox that trimmed the deficit to five points with 3:30 to go. Records' contested layup made it 64-63 American with 49 ticks left.
Colgate needed a stop and got one. Braeden Smith was fouled on the defensive rebound and headed to the line with eight seconds left in regulation. He made the first to tie the game at 64-64 and the Cotterell crowd erupted. That capped a 15-4 Raider response over eight minutes of game time to knot the game even.
Smith's second foul shot didn't go and American hauled in the rebound before using a timeout to draw up the winning play. Stephens swished the game-winning jumper from the elbow with 2.4 left.
Two long passes found Records under the basket, but he never got a shot off before time expired.
Colgate's winning streak halted at 12, which was the second longest in the nation.
COACH LANGEL'S COMMENTS
"American played like warriors today. They made a bunch of plays that impacted winning. Not to take anything away from their performance, but we didn't have the edge that the game demands if we're going to live up to our expectations. To lose again at home is disappointing on senior day. This could be a good setback for us if we choose to learn the lessons that need to be learned.
"There were so many plays in the first half that were deflating. Too many mistakes with attention to detail that you can't make against a team that is good and really determined to beat you. A lot of things you can second guess, but really it's the details and determination to win that American – from top to bottom – had that edge over us this afternoon."
HOW IT HAPPENED
Colgate made five of its first seven attempts from the field, led by seven early points including a triple from Moffatt, who helped push the Raiders in front 11-7 at the first media timeout. Colgate's starting five featured its three true seniors in Alex Capitano, Sam Thomson, and Jeff Woodward.
Brady Cummins sank a tough runner in the lane to cap a 7-0 Colgate surge that brought the Raiders in front 16-7. American's Lincoln Ball ended a three-minute drought with a three-point play and then Matt Rogers connected on a 3-pointer from the top of the key to close the gap to 16-13.
The margin was still three points when American's Rogers hit a floater in the lane to cut Colgate's lead to 19-18 with eight minutes remaining in the first half. Geoff Sprouse connected on a trey to tie the game at 21-21 and it was even again at 23-23 with just over four minutes remaining in the half.
Cox's jumper in the lane extended Colgate's lead to 27-23 before a 3-pointer from Sprouse cut it to a one-point game, which is where the score stood at the intermission with the Raiders in front 32-31.
Back-to-back layups from Records and Moffatt gave Colgate a 43-41 lead with 14:51 remaining but American once again punched back – this time a 12-0 run with triples from Rogers and Sprouse – to open a 10-point margin 53-43 with 12:31 left in the game.
The Eagles never trailed again, shot 50 percent in the second half, and led by as many as 11.
Moffatt scored 20 points on 8-of-9 from the field to lead Colgate offensively. Woodward was perfect 5-for-5 from the field and finished with 10 points. Smith and Cox each had five assists. The Raiders shot 51.1 percent for the game (24-47) and 38.5 percent (5-13) from behind the arc.
American was led by Rogers, who finished with 23 points with four treys. Stephens added 17 and Sprouse 14. The Eagles shot 47.4 percent overall (27-57) and 43 percent from the three-point line (9-21).
GAME NOTES
- Colgate is 16-2 this season when leading at halftime and now 11-1 when it shoots 50 percent or better.
- The Raiders are 27-2 in February since 2020-21. Both losses have been to American.
- Colgate's 23-game home winning streak in February, which spanned five years, came to an end.
- It is also Colgate's first loss on CBS Sports Network since the 2019-20 Patriot League championship game against Boston University. Colgate had won 21 straight on the network.
- The Raiders are now 10-3 at home, their first season with three home losses since 2017-18.
UP NEXT
Colgate (20-9, 14-2 PL) heads to Holy Cross on Wednesday to take on the Crusaders at 7 p.m.
