WEST POINT, N.Y. – It was a once in a lifetime opportunity for members of the Gallaudet University men's basketball program to square off with Army West Point on Sunday afternoon in the Christl Arena, just a stone's throw away from the Hudson River.

The Bison deaf and hard of hearing players faced off against the country's future officers in the U.S. Army. It was a respectable game that meant more than the final outcome as it was an honor for GU to have the chance to play at Army West Point.

Gallaudet played close to the Black Knights in the first half as the buff and blue only trailed by 19 points, 47-26, at intermission. Army West Point coasted in the second half en route to an 111-53 victory before a crowd of 620.

Army West Point (4-7) jumped out to a quick 10-0 lead just minutes into the game as Ryan Curry (12 points) drained two quick 3-pointers. Gallaudet (0-8 overall, 0-7 vs. NCAA teams) got on the scoreboard at the 16:43 mark when first year JeVaughn Sargent (Laurel, Md.) made a fadeaway jumper. Jacen Holloway (11 points) scored three straight buckets for the Black Knights as they led 15-2.

GU's next points came from first-year forward Jayden Orsi-Pedersen (Frederick, Md.) and sophomore guard Jory Valencia (Riverside, Calif.) at the 14:20 and 12:05 marks, respectively.

Valencia had a solid first half as he converted on a fast break and later sank a 3-pointer to pull the Bison to within 10 points, 30-20, with 5:07 left in the first half. That was as close as GU got to Army West Point the rest of the game.

Gallaudet hung around with the Black Knights as guard Samer Sawan (Toronto, Ontario) hit a 3-pointer in transition at 4:03 as the Bison trailed 35-23. Army West Point scored 11 of the next 15 points to take a 46-27 lead into halftime.

The trio of Valencia, Orsi-Pedersen and Sargent led Gallaudet with seven, six and five points, respectively, in the first half. GU scored nine points off 10 turnovers made by the Black Knights in the first 20 minutes of play.

In the second half, GU got outscored 65-26 as both teams emptied the benches as Bison players got the chance to log some minutes against a NCAA Division I program. Gallaudet had 11 players score two or more points in the game. Army West Point saw its 14 players score at least two points and play for eight or more minutes in the game.

Orsi-Pedersen led GU with a career-high 13 points and three rebounds while Valencia finished with 12 points. Sargent had a final tally of seven points, two boards and two assists. The Bison scored 24 points in the paint and received 30 points from their bench.

Army West Point was led by Kevin McCarthy who recorded 18 points, four assists and three rebounds and made 7 of 9 shots from the field, which included four 3-pointers. The Black Knights set a program record for 3-pointers as they made 20 of 42 (47.6 percent). Army West Point scored 42 points in the paint and received 58 points from their bench.

UP NEXT
Gallaudet returns home and will host Goucher College (2-5) this Tuesday, Dec. 9, at 7 p.m. in the Field House.