POUGHKEEPSIE, New York – The Marist men's basketball team fell to Navy, 67-61, in a non-conference game at McCann Arena on Sunday afternoon.
 

Summary

• Six straight points from Jaylen Walker, including a three-pointer, staked Navy to a 12-4 lead at the 14:25 mark.
• The Midshipmen extended their lead to 22-9 at the 9:40 mark thanks to a 10-0 run.
• Back-to-back three-pointers by Samkelo Cele and Ricardo Wright cut Marist's deficit to five, but Navy countered with a 14-0 run.
• The Midshipmen led 41-22 at halftime.
• Early in the second half, Marist embarked on a 14-0 run to cut its deficit to eight. Wright had 10 points in that run, including a pair of three-pointers.
• Jao Ituka scored seven straight points to bring Marist within six with 9:33 to go.
• However, the Red Foxes did not come any closer. Navy's lead stayed between six and 12 points the rest of the way, and Ituka's three-point play in the closing seconds cut the final margin to six.

 

Stats

• Wright had game highs with 18 points and seven rebounds. He scored 15 of his points in the second half.
• Ituka finished with 17 points and shot 6-for-9 from the field. He scored 13 points in the second half.
• Cele (10 points) gave Marist three double-digit scorers.
• Anthony Nelson led four Navy double-digit scorers with 13 points. He shot 3-for-4 from three-point range and also had five rebounds.
• Navy shot 9-for-17 (.529) from three-point range, while Marist was 7-for-22 (.318).
• Navy shot 16-for-20 (.800) from the free-throw line, while Marist was 10-for-19 (.526).

 

Notes

• Wright tied his season high in rebounds.
• Ituka is averaging 14.0 points while averaging 18.4 minutes in his last five games. He played a career-high 23 minutes against Navy.
• Cele has now scored in double figures in four straight games, and six of his last seven.
• This was Navy's first trip to Marist. The Midshipmen are 2-0 against the Red Foxes all-time.

 

Records

• Navy is now 7-3 this season.
• Marist stands at 4-5.

 

Up Next

• After concluding final exams, Marist plays its final road non-conference game on Saturday at Boston University.
• Tip-off is set for 5 p.m.
• Dean Darling (play-by-play) and Steve Eggink (analyst) will have the call on the Red Fox Network and Varsity Network app starting at 4:45. The game will be broadcast on ESPN+.