HAMILTON – Colgate let a golden chance at the No. 2 seed in the Patriot League tournament slip away after falling to Lafayette, 70-69, Wednesday night at Cotterell Court.
The Raiders, who have clinched a top-four seed and home quarterfinal, now must hope for a win at first-place Navy or a Lehigh loss to Bucknell on Saturday to secure a top-two spot. The Midshipmen are 13-1 inside Alumni Hall this season with their only home loss to Yale on Nov. 7.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Colgate overcame a sluggish first half to lead by eight in the second half, 44-36, with 12:28 remaining after Ayomi Odetoyinbo's free throw. Lafayette used a 15-3 scoring streak over the next three minutes to take the lead for good, 57-51, with 7:41 left.
A driving layup by Jalen Cox in the final minute cut the deficit to 70-69. Lafayette's Mark Butler missed the front end of a 1-and-1, but a missed layup at the buzzer sealed the one-point decision – Colgate's fourth one-point decision in league play.
The Raiders shot 58.6 percent in the second half, including 5-for-6 from behind the arc. For the game, Colgate shot 46.4 percent overall (26-56), 37.5 percent from behind the arc (6-16), and 11-of-14 from the free throw line.
Colgate started cold on offense, connecting on just 1-of-7 from behind the arc and 3-of-13 from the field. With limited offense Lafayette established an early 18-9 lead after a second-chance layup from Caleb Williams midway through the opening stanza.
Cox provided a short boost for the Raiders, scoring four straight points in an 8-0 surge that closed the gap to 26-23. Lafayette, which led by as many as 11, carried a 31-25 advantage to the break after a 3-pointer from Christian Humphrey-Rembert.
Josh Ahayere was 2-for-2 from behind the arc and scored 10 points inside the first four minutes of the second half to give the Raiders a 37-35 lead. Colgate eventually built an eight-point margin, 44-36, but the Leopards pulled back in front and led by as many as six, 64-58, on the heels of their 15-3 run.
Alekseyenko's 3-pointer cut Colgate's deficit to 67-65 with 2:14 left, but Lafayette used three straight trips to the foul line to thwart the comeback. Butler scored 13 of his 15 points in the second half, and KaiMani Murdock finished 3-for-3 from behind the the arc, to anchor the Leopards' offensively.
NOTES
- Andrew Alekseyenko reached double-figures for the 14th consecutive game.
- Colgate is now on a three-game skid at home against Lafayette. The Raiders' last win over the Leopards at Cotterell Court was in the 2023 Patriot League championship.
- Ben Tweedy was on triple-double watch, finishing with 12 points, a career-high 10 rebounds, and a career-high eight assists.
UP NEXT
Colgate (17-13, 11-6 Patriot) closes the regular season at top-seeded Navy (24-6, 16-1 Patriot) at 4 p.m. on Saturday. The Midshipmen outlasted the Raiders 84-80 in overtime two weeks ago in Hamilton.
