EASTON, Pa. – Featuring four Terriers in double figures, the Boston University men's basketball team pulled out a hard-fought 81-76 victory at Lafayette on Saturday evening.
 
With the help of 10 3-pointers against a squad allowing just five per game, the Terriers (2-5, 2-5 PL) remained perfect on the road while snapping the Leopards' (5-2, 5-2 PL) five' game win streak.
 
Senior Javante McCoy flushed four clutch free throws during the final minute to finish with a team-high 16 points and joined classmate Sukhmail Mathon (nine pts.) in hauling in a game-high nine rebounds. Juniors Jonas Harper and Jack Hemphill combined for 25 points with seven 3-pointers, while junior Walter Whyte tallied 14 points.  
 
Leading the Patriot League at 23 points per game, Justin Jaworski went 6-of-14 and 2-of-7 from behind the arc to finish with 20 points, as four of his teammates tallied between 12-13 points. Lafayette entered the contest averaging 10.5 made 3-pointers and 41.2 3FG% but finished 6-of-19 (.316) for the loss.

DOWN THE STRETCH

• Harper flushed his third trey to break a 49-49 deadlock and give BU the lead for good at 11:05.
• After E.J. Stephens hit one of his own to pull the Leopards within one (55-54), sophomore Ethan Brittain-Watts and Harper hit back-to-back bombs during an 8-0 spurt capped by Mathon's hook shot at 7:10.
• Having already erased an 11-point first-half deficit, the Leopards tried to mount a second rally and eventually whittled BU's lead to two (66-64) on Jaworski's 3-point play and Tyrone Perry's layup with 4:27 remaining.
• The Leopards would never get any closer, as sophomore Garrett Pascoe hit two free throws on the next possession.
• Kyle Jenkins responded to Whyte's layup with Lafayette's final 3-pointer to put the deficit at 76-71 with 35 seconds left.
• Jenkins added two free throws at 25 seconds after the Leopards hit the first of two free throws and secured the offensive rebound to cut BU's lead even further to 77-74.
• McCoy came through for the Terriers by hitting all four of his attempts at the charity stripe to seal the win.

THE SETUP

• Both teams started out strong offensively with Hemphill draining consecutive 3-pointers to give BU an early 15-11 lead at 12:59.
• Owning a 21-19 advantage, Hemphill fed junior Fletcher Tynen for a layup to spark a 9-0 run capped by two Whyte free throws at 8:47.
• Three minutes later, Hemphill found McCoy for a driving layup and bonus free throw to keep the Terriers ahead, 36-27.
• The Leopards finished the half on an 11-2 run to erase BU's double-digit lead, as the two teams missed three field goal attempts apiece during the final two minutes.
• Mathon helped BU start the second half with nine straight points by hitting two buckets in the paint and finding Harper for a 3-pointer at 17:48.
• The Terriers though went into a cold stretch, shooting 1-of-11, and found themselves tied for the fourth and final time at 11:36 on Leo O'Boyle's 3-pointer, 49-49. 

GAME NOTES

• Besides tying his personal best with nine rebounds, McCoy moved to No. 21 all-time at BU with 1,148 points.
• Harper netted at least four 3-pointers for the first time since last season's Patriot League title win at Colgate, which was also BU's last game outside Massachusetts.
• Hemphill set a career high with three 3-pointers and reached double figures for the third time this season after accomplishing the feat a combined five times his first two seasons.
• BU entered the game averaging 9.5 assists and had 10 at the half before finishing with 16 total, as Mathon, Brittain-Watts, McCoy and Pascoe all had three helpers apiece.
• The Terriers out-rebounded Lafayette, 38-30, and outscored the Leopards off second-chance opportunities (22-19) and turnovers (15-11).
• The contest marked the fourth straight one to be decided by five points or less, as BU improved to 15-8 overall and 13-4 since joining the PL.
• Neal Quinn led Lafayette with seven rebounds while adding 12 points and three assists.
• The Leopards suffered their first loss in regulation with their previous defeat occurring in OT at Lehigh after the Mountain Hawks hit a buzzer-beating 3-pointer.

NEXT UP: LAFAYETTE

• The teams will meet again Sunday (Jan. 24) at the Kirby Sports Center with the CBS Sports Network broadcast set for 6 p.m.
• Fans will be able to listen to the game as well at GoTerriers.com/TSRN.
• BU will be seeking its first sweep against the Leopards since 2018 after the two teams split each of the last two seasons.