Navy holds off Delaware State 66-60 at Alumni Hall

Navy beat Delaware State 66-60 on Saturday at Alumni Hall, with Jordan Pennick doing most of the heavy lifting on a night when the Midshipmen needed every point they could get.

Pennick finished with 24. That was the story.

The Hornets were not pushovers. Delaware State got 17 points from Nehemiah Reedus, who also pulled down seven rebounds and ran the offense with six assists. Nasir Muhammad was a problem all game, too, threading passes and knocking down threes from well beyond the arc, including one from 23 feet and another from 27.

But Navy had answers. Pennick got going early, hitting a 23-foot three-pointer off a feed from Cam Cole, then later converted both ends of a free-throw trip. Cole finished with five assists, the most of any Navy player.

David Burnett was physical on the glass, pulling down 12 rebounds to anchor the interior. He also gave Navy a timely lift on offense, converting a layup and then burying a 25-foot three-pointer off a Jinwoo Kim assist when the Midshipmen needed some breathing room.

Kim got in on the scoring himself, draining a 24-foot three with a Pennick assist to push the lead. Joshua Obiora contributed a 3-foot jumper early, with Anthony Parker setting him up, and added a 15-foot jumper later. Parker finished busy, assisting on multiple Navy buckets including two of Muhammad's triples for Delaware State.

Jerry Ashley Jr. added a layup for the Hornets, and Reedus hit jumpers at 15 and 24 feet, the latter a three-pointer off a Muhammad assist, keeping Delaware State in range throughout. The final margin was six, which is about how it felt.

Navy improved to 1-1. Delaware State dropped to the same record.

Burnett's 12 rebounds were the most by any player on either side.