Navy Reaches The Bitter End

Bucknell Wins on 40-Footer in 3rd OT: Bucknell 87, Navy 86

Navy senior Greg Sprink, the Patriot League men's basketball player of the year, set a career high with 37 points in a conference quarterfinal against Bucknell last night. He won't get a chance to better it.

Bucknell senior John Griffin made a running, 40-foot shot as time expired in triple overtime to give his team an 87-86 victory before 2,158 at Alumni Hall. The second-seeded Midshipmen (16-14) were very close to winning their first conference tournament game since 2001. Sophomore T.J. Topercer, a reserve who had scored five points in the past 16 games, scored on a putback with 2.1 seconds left to give Navy an 86-84 lead.

As Navy's players and fans celebrated, Griffin took off downcourt and caught a pass from junior Justin Castleberry. He launched his shot from just inside the midcourt stripe.

"I felt we'd won it," Navy Coach Billy Lange said. "What are you going to do? It's almost surreal to sit here and think that our season is over."

Said Griffin: "It felt good leaving my hand. Sometimes when I take those shots, the ball is loose, but this time everything felt compact."

It was Navy's first triple-overtime game since 1977 and the first triple-overtime game in league tournament history.

Such a dramatic ending did not seem possible after Navy took a 45-28 lead with 15 minutes 42 seconds left in regulation following an eight-point spurt by freshman Romeo Garcia.

But the Midshipmen scored one point on their next 12 possessions, and No. 7-seeded Bucknell (12-18) got back into the game. A 17-1 run, keyed by six points from sophomore Patrick Behan, cut the deficit to 46-45 with 8:17 to play.

As if the scoreless drought was not problematic enough, Sprink picked up his third and fourth fouls in that span. Navy was back on track after a jump shot by Sprink gave it a 58-52 lead with 2:23 left. But Bucknell forced overtime after a layup by freshman Todd O'Brien tied the game at 59 with with 1.6 seconds left.

The first overtime ended with the score tied at 65. The crucial moment in the second overtime was a three-pointer by Griffin as the shot clock expired with one minute to play; the shot gave the Bison a 72-70 lead. Navy tied the score at 75 following a three-pointer by Kaleo Kina with 16 seconds left.

In the third overtime, Navy sophomore guard Chris Harris pulled up for a three-pointer just as the public address announcer screamed, "One minute to play!" Harris made the shot for an 84-81 lead. Bucknell tied it on its next possession, on a three-pointer by freshman G.W. Boon.

Before the game, a league representative presented three awards at midcourt: coach of the year to Lange, player of the year to Sprink and defensive player of the year to Bucknell sophomore Stephen Tyree.

The matchup between Sprink and Tyree had a competitive start. Sprink missed two of his first three field goals and Navy led 9-7 when a crucial moment ensued: Tyree was called for his second foul with 12:44 left in the first half. He played less than a minute the rest of the half.

With Tyree, Bucknell would have struggled with Sprink, who entered with 48 points in 59 minutes against the Bison this season. Without Tyree, it was no contest. Sprink made a three-pointer seven seconds after Tyree left. He made another a minute later and finished the half with 24 points. Navy led 34-24.

Griffin finished with 21 points for the Bison. Harris finished with 17 points and Garcia had 12 points and nine rebounds. Harris, Kina and Sprink had combined for 68 points in a 78-72 win over Bucknell on Feb. 9. Last night, Kina and Harris combined to make 10 of 31 shots (32 percent). Each is likely to be back next season. Sprink, who fouled out in the final minute of the second overtime, will not be.

"I jumped right out of my seat" when Topercer made the basket, Sprink said. "I thought the game was over. Out of the corner of my eye I watched that last play, I saw the shot go up. And now I'm in here."