The American University men's basketball team suffered a 72-53 loss Wednesday night at Navy, ending the team's three-game win streak.

Vlad Moldoveanu led the Eagles with 14 points and 12 rebounds for his third double-double of the year. Nick Hendra added nine points and three assists.

American (14-7, 4-2) shot just 9-of-31 in the second half and finished the game shooting 35.8 percent from the floor. Navy (7-15, 2-4), meanwhile, made 14-of-26 shots after the intermission and hit on 48.1 percent of its attempts for the game. J.J. Avila led all scorers with 24 points while Jordan Sugars chipped in 15.

American and Navy traded baskets early and found themselves locked in six ties through the first 10-plus minutes. Moldoveanu broke an eight-all score with his first three-pointer but was matched at the other end by a Navy and-one. Troy Brewer later gave the Eagles a 16-14 edge on a breakaway layup before Navy responded with back-to-back baskets for an 18-16 lead.

American regained a 19-18 advantage on Daniel Munoz's three-pointer. The Midshipmen used a 14-6 stretch to take a 32-25 lead, however, and held a 35-29 margin at break.

American shot 45.5 percent in the first half against 42.3 percent for Navy, but the Midshipmen made 9-of-10 free throws to help build their lead. Hendra scored seven points to lead the Eagles through the first 20 minutes while Moldoveanu contributed six points and six rebounds.

Navy opened the second half on a 14-4 run to push its lead to 16, 49-33. J.J. Avila scored 10 straight points for the Midshipmen during the stretch, including two three-pointers. Avila later extended the advantage to 56-39 with his fifth three of the night.

The Mids led by as many as 26 points before an 8-0 run by the Eagles made it a 67-49 game. American was unable to cut its deficit any further, however, as Navy took the victory by a final score of 72-53.

American will return to Bender Arena Saturday, January 29 to face Lafayette at 4:00 p.m. in the team's annual 'Phil Bender' event. Tickets are still available for the game and can be purchased online by clicking here.

For fans unable to attend the game, Saturday's contest will be broadcast to a national television audience on CBS College Sports.