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January 15, 2003

Boxscore

Glenn Stokes led the way for the Eagles with 24 points against Navy.

American Cruises past Navy By 17, 70-53
Glenn Stokes storms back with 24 points

WASHINGTON — Glenn Stokes (Silver Spring, Md./Albert Einstein), who suffered an ankle injury just five days ago, led all scorers with 24 points and chipped in three rebounds, three steals and two assists to lead the Eagles to a convincing 70-53 win over Navy. Stokes was extremely efficient in attaining his points as he was 6-for-12 from the field and 8-for-8 from the free throw line.

“This win was the result of a scrappy team effort,” said American head coach Jeff Jones. “We needed it. I wouldn’t say we were desperate for a win, but close to desperate.”

Steve Miles (Alexandria, Va./Hayfield) provided ample support for Stokes with 14 points, four rebounds, two assists and two steals in 33 minutes of action. The senior played a steady game, seven points in each half, and his layup with 1:16 left in the game gave AU a 68-48 lead, its’ biggest of the game.

Stokes is now 11th on AU’s all-time list for threes with 87 and needs just four to crack the top 10. He is tied for fifth in career three-point percentage at .401. Miles added two treys to his career total and is now tied for sixth on the all-time list for made threes with 93. Tonight the senior backcourt duo helped the Eagles get off to a 9-0 start and 11-2 lead after the first five minutes. Between them, they had nine of AU’s first 11 points. AU’s defense kept Navy from scoring a field goal until the 14:26 mark.

“I just wanted to put a little pressure on their guards,” said American’s Glenn Stokes. “I felt great at the start of the game, a little tight in the beginning of the second half, but eventually shot my way out of it. A good shooter has to keep shooting, as long as your not forcing it.”

In the second half the Eagles began to pull away as senior Ric Patiejunas (Vilnius, Lithuania/Vilnius College) and sophomore Raimondas Petrauskas (Mazeikiai, Lithuania/Physical Culture Academy) combined for eight points in a three minute span to push AU’s lead from four to 11. A quick Navy bucket cut the lead back to nine with 7:47 remaining, but the Midshipman could never get it back into single digits the rest of the night. Patiejunas led AU in rebounding with five boards and finished with seven points in just 14 minutes of action. Petrauskas had one assist, one block, two boards and four points in 15 minutes.

Jernavis Draughn (Triangle, Va./Potomac Senior) had a solid effort with six points, three rebounds, three assists and a block in 33 minutes while Jason Thomas (Herndon, Va./Notre Dame Prep) scored six points and snared four rebounds in just nine minutes.

American won the battle of the boards by four, 31-27, and shot 86.4 percent from the free throw line (19-22).

American (6-9/1-1) will next play at Lehigh for a game with the Mountain Hawks on January 18, 2003 at Stabler Arena. The game is at 3:15 p.m.