Navy never needs a reason to get excited when it faces Army in any sport.
The two schools? rivalry continues Sunday when Army hosts Navy in a basketball doubleheader in West Point, N.Y. The men?s game tips off at 12 p.m. with the women following at 2:30. Both games will be televised on ESPNU.
These rivalry games come at a point of the season for both Navy teams when a win will have some added importance. Navy?s men (11-7 overall, 1-3 Patriot League) enter the game having lost five of their last seven, including a 61-42 loss Wednesday at Holy Cross. Leading scorer Greg Sprink (16.1 points per game) scored just eight in the loss. The team?s offensive output was the lowest for the Midshipmen in coach Billy Lange?s three-year tenure.
Army (12-7, 2-2) is coming off a 60-55 win Wednesday over American. The Black Knights have reached the 12-win mark for just the second time in 20 years. The backcourt duo of Jarell Brown and Matt Bell pace Army?s offense with 17.8 and 15.3 points per game, respectively.
“There is so much emotion involved in this game,” Lange said. “We need a big signature win. However, in the course of the entire season, this is still just one game in the Patriot League, and we have to remember it won?t make or break our season.”
Sunday is likely to be an even greater challenge for the Navy women (7-10, 2-2) since Army is the defending Patriot League champion. The Midshipmen suffered 23 turnovers and shot 31.3 percent from the field in Tuesday?s 49-39 loss at Holy Cross.
The Army women (17-2, 4-0) defeated American, 60-47, on Tuesday. Army sits atop the Patriot League standings, while Navy is in a three-way tie for third.
