WEST POINT, N.Y. – In a service academy rivalry game filled with excitement, it was the Army West Point men's basketball team walking out of Christl Arena victorious on Saturday afternoon.
The Black Knights (14-13, 9-7 Patriot League) battled the Midshipmen (13-14, 7-9 Patriot League) into overtime, where Army took control and claimed the 86-75 home win to complete the regular season sweep and secure the gold star in the Army-Navy Star Series presented by USAA.
Four Cadets scored in double figures led by a 32-point performance from Tommy Funk. In a full 45 minutes of play, the senior point guard handed out seven assists with just one turnover, while finishing 10-of-25 from the floor with five treys to go along with seven rebounds.
Matt Wilson also saw action in over 40 minutes against the Mids and the Alexandria, Ky., native posted a double-double on 13 points and 12 rebounds. He received some help on the glass from Josh Caldwell, who collected seven rebounds and pitched in offensively with 14 points.
Alex King had himself a day as well, going a flawless 5-of-5 from the field which included a 4-of-4 shooting effort from deep. The junior forward ended his afternoon with a season-best 22 points and four rebounds.
ARMY HIGHLIGHTS AND GAME NOTES
- Army completed its first regular season sweep of Navy since the 2011-12 campaign.
- The Black Knights claimed the star on their home floor for the first time since Feb. 11, 2012. That game resulted in a 69-63 double-overtime win for Army.
- The 86 points were the most allowed by Navy this season. It is also the most given up by the Mids in a game since Feb. 23, 2019.
- Army scored the third-most points versus Navy in 133 all-time meetings.
- The class of 2020 became the winningest class in program history versus Navy with a 5-3 record.
- Funk extended his double-digit scoring streak to 23 games.
- It was the seventh time in his career that he reached double figures in scoring against Navy.
- The Warrington, Pa., native moved into the top-10 in points at Army, passing George Tatum '95 for 10th with 1,488.
- Funk scored over 30 points in a game for the second time this season and in his career.
- The senior point guard became the first cadet to have two 30-point games in the same season since Kyle Wilson '16 during the 2014-15 campaign.
- Funk made double-digit shots in a game for the third time in his career.
- He has now handed out five or more assists in 12 straight games.
- He played and started in his 121st career game for the Black Knights.
- Funk's one steal gave him sole possession of seventh in career takeaways at Army.
- Wilson notched his eighth double-double of the season and the 17th of his career.
- The senior extended his double-digit scoring streak to 15 games.
- King put up over 20 points for the first time this season and the third time in his career.
- Caldwell recorded five or more rebounds in the fifth consecutive game.
- Army committed just eight turnovers as a team.
- It marked the fifth time this season that Army committed single-digit mishaps.
- The Cadets scored 27 points off 11 Navy turnovers.
- Army's starters accounted for all 86 points.
- The Black Knights made 11 treys and improved to 7-0 on the season when burying double-digit 3-pointers.
- Army improved to 10-1 when leading at the half.
- The Cadets are now 7-0 when scoring 80 or more points in a game this season.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- It was a battle from the beginning as Army and Navy were deadlocked 12-12 with 13:07 remaining in the first half. A Funk 3-pointer gave the Black Knights the edge, but the Midshipmen countered with a 9-1 run to go ahead by three, 21-18.
- Over a five-minute stretch beginning with 6:31 on the clock, the Black Knights started to showcase their efficient shooting by going 4-of-4 from the field and 6-of-6 from the charity stripe. Three of the four made shots by Army came from long range and gave the Cadets a 35-29 edge heading into the half.
- The two sides went back and forth for much of the second stanza. With 5:15 left to play, the Black Knights got a spark offensively once Wilson corralled the rebound off a Funk miss and put it back in while getting fouled for a timely three-point play. The Wilson score was the start of a 9-0 run that put Army ahead, 63-56.
- Navy crawled right back into the game and was within a single point with nine seconds remaining following a pair of free throws by Evan Wieck. Funk was fouled on the ensuing possession and drained them both to give his team the 69-66 lead, but then things got interesting.
- Cam Davis of Navy went up for a 3-pointer with three seconds remaining and was fouled. He made the first two but missed the third. However, Navy got the offensive rebound and Davis was fouled again. This time, he missed the first and made the second to send the game into overtime.
- In the overtime period it was all Army as a 3-pointer by King sparked a 7-0 run that lasted nearly three minutes. After a Navy basket ended the Mids' brief scoring drought, the Black Knights went right back on the attack and put in five unanswered points to go ahead, 83-71, with 37 seconds left to play. From that point forward, the Cadets iced the game at the foul line en route to securing the thrilling, 86-75, home win over Navy.