Navy Midshipmen Dominate in Patriot League Men’s Basketball Opener

The Navy Midshipmen men’s basketball team put an awful non-conference slate behind them in a Patriot League opener against American.

Dec 15, 2024; Blacksburg, Virginia, USA; Virginia Tech Hokies forward Mylyjael Poteat (34) shoots the ball against Navy Midshipmen center Aidan Kehoe (99) during the first half at Cassell Coliseum. / Peter Casey-Imagn Images

The Navy Midshipmen men’s basketball team got off to a sharp start in Patriot League action with 81-58 win over American on Thursday at Alumni Hall in Annapolis, Md.

The Midshipmen (4-10, 1-0 in Patriot) won just three games in non-conference entering the showdown.

The Eagles (6-8, 0-1) entered the game having not won a true road games in six tries. The two schools had two common opponents in non-conference — Harvard and Saint Joseph’s. American lost to both while Navy beat Harvard and lost to Saint Joseph’s.

The Midshipmen evened their record in Patriot League openers to 17-17.

American led the game just once, after the Eagles made a pair of free throws less than a minute into the contest. Navy’s Aidan Kehoe answered with a game-tying layup, and then Jinwoo Kim drained a 3-pointer as the Midshipmen went on a 8-0 run.

From there, Navy slowly, but surely, ran away with the game, building a 10-point lead 10 minutes into the game and consistently maintaining it.

The Midshipmen were helped greatly by 55% shooting from the field, including a 5-for-14 night from the 3-point line and a 70% clip from the free-throw line. American made nine 3-pointers but only shot 38% from the field.

Navy also held a clear edge on the glass, 38-28, and outscored American, 40-24, in the paint.

Nearly everyone saw time for the Midshipmen, with Kehoe leading with 20 points. He also had a double-double with 11 rebounds. Donovan Draper also had a double-double with 17 points and 11 rebounds, along with a team-high eight assists. Austin Benigni added 16 points with four assists.

Colin Smalls led American with 18 points, including four 3-pointers. Matt Rogers added 13 points and a team-high eight rebounds.

Navy and American have been long-time Patriot League rivals, as the Midshipmen tipped off their 34th season in the league. But, this is the first time since American joined the league 24 years ago that the two teams met in the conference opener.

It was also a bit of surprise that Navy won in the fashion that it did. Historically, the Midshipmen and the Eagles tend to play tighter affairs. Going into Thursday, 13 of the last 19 meetings were determined by single digits.

Navy now leads the overall series, 54-52, but still trails American in Patriot League games, 30-19. In the program’s history, Navy has only faced Army West Point more often.

Navy returns to Alumni Hall on Sunday for a 2 p.m. Patriot League showdown with Lafayette.