Lehigh University
Navy
Late rally falls short as Mountain Hawks fall to Navy
2/19/2005 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Poor shooting plagued the Mountain Hawks in the opening half as Lehigh shot just 29 percent from the field in the opening half. After falling behind by as many as eight points in the first half, Lehigh rallied and trailed by only one at the break. Sophomore Jose Olivero led the Mountain Hawks with 13 points in the first half.
The second half started as a back and forth affair, but midway through the period Lehigh went five and a half minutes without a field goal as Navy built an eight point lead with eight minutes to play. The Mountain Hawks would battle back, but after a pair Corey Johnson three pointers the Mids lead by 10 with 2:45 to play. Lehigh would get as close as one and the Mountain Hawks had an open look for the win, but Nick Monserez missed on a three point try from the left corner and Navy escaped with the one point win.
Olivero led all scorers with 23 points as the Mountain Hawks shot 34 percent on the night and placed three in double figures. Joe Knight posted a double-double with 13 points and 10 assists and Jason Mgebroff added 12 points.
Navy placed five players in double figures lead by Matt Fannin’s 16 points as the Mids shot 42 percent on the night.
Lehigh head coach Billy Taylor was upset with his team following the loss. "We did not give a consistent effort tonight, particularly on the defensive end. We fixed a few things that went wrong in our last game (at Holy Cross), but there are still other issues we need to correct." Taylor continued, "If we want to be a great team, we need to maintain our focus for the entire game."
Lehigh will look to get back on the winning track on Wednesday night when the Mountain Hawks welcome American to Stabler Arena. Tip off set for 7:00. For tickets, call (610) 7LU Game or visit the Stabler Arena box office on game day.
