Army Holds Off Persistent Hawks

WEST POINT — Army held off nearby SUNY New Paltz, 77-60, in the first-ever meeting between the two schools on Tuesday night at Christl Arena.

New Paltz, a Division III school, matched their Division I counterpart’s 36 second half points, outshot the Cadets 47-44 percent in the period, and cut the Cadets’ lead to 13 on three separate occasions.

Unfortunately, in the first half the (7-7) Hawks converted on just 28 percent of their shots — while (6-14) Army was 44 percent effective — and trailed 41-24 at the break.

Sophomore guard Mac Cavanaugh led all New Paltz scorers with 17 points off the bench, while teammate Robert Jones, also a sophomore, reached double figures in both points (15) and rebounds (10).

Team leading scorer Keith Kenney (18.9 ppg) suffered through a long night, converting on just 3-of-17 from the field, to finish with just seven points.