Lehigh University
No. 22 Vanderbilt
Lehigh falls to No. 22 Vanderbilt 85-59
12/30/2003 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Nashville, TN – Freshman Jose Olivero connected for 18 points, but it wasn’t enough as the Mountain Hawks fell to No. 22 Vanderbilt 85-59 in front of 8,823 at Memorial Gym on Tuesday evening. With the loss, Lehigh falls to 6-5 on the season, while the Commodores remain a perfect 10-0.
“I saw some similarities between this game and our match up with UConn,” said head coach Billy Taylor. “We just didn’t compete tonight as we did against UConn. But, they (Vanderbilt) are a good team, and combined with our lack of focus, we just were overmatched.”
Neither team could pull away from another in the first half, with the biggest lead coming when Jason Holwerda tipped in a shot at the buzzer to put Vanderbilt up 39-27 at the half. Seniors Ra Tiah and Austen Rowland both played a solid 20 minutes of basketball in the first half, with Tiah connecting for eight points on three of four shooting and Rowland handing out six assists, while ripping off three steals. Junior Nick Monserez found his touch early as the swingman hit for two three-pointers en route to six points. For the half, Lehigh shot 50 percent from the field and from beyond the arc, while Vanderbilt connected on 44 percent of its shots. Senior Matt Freije led the Commodores with seven points in the first half.
Lehigh came out in the second half and struggled with its shooting, as the size and strength of the Commodores began to wear on the Mountain Hawks. Lehigh shot only 35 percent in the second half, while Vanderbilt hit an impressive 57 percent of its shots. The Commodores used defensive pressure and speed to overpower the Mountain Hawks, although Lehigh would keep the game within reach for most of the second half. Olivero scored 16 of his points in the second half, including 12 in a row at one point, as the freshman played under control throughout the half. Monserez finished with ten points on the evening, and Rowland hit for eight to go along with seven assists. The Mountain Hawks were out rebounded 39-30, and had 22 turnovers compared to the Commodores 14.
Coach Taylor wants to see his team improve and he and his staff will go back and look at the tape before making any moves. “We need to go back and see what we must work on. I will be very critical with my eye, as will the assistant coaches. There is no reason to make any sudden reactions, so we’ll watch the tape and see what we can improve upon.”
Lehigh returns to action on Friday when the Mountain Hawks play their first home game since December 17, as 2003 NCAA Tournament participant Wagner comes to Stabler Arena. Tip-off is set for 7:00 and the game can be heard live in the Lehigh Valley on Oldies 1470 WKAP and worldwide on Lehigh’s website.
