Lehigh University
Monmouth
Lehigh struggles to get going in loss at Monmouth
12/29/2006 12:00:00 AM | Football
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WEST LONG BRANCH, N.J. – Poor shooting and turnovers plagued Lehigh all evening long as the Mountain Hawks fell to the Monmouth Hawks by a score of 67-39 at Boylan Gym on Friday night. Freshman Marquis Hall scored a career-high 18 points on 7 of 12 shooting, but was the lone Lehigh player in double digits as the Brown and White falls to 5-10 on the season. Monmouth, who improves to 4-8 on the year, was led on offense by its own freshman point guard, Jhamar Youngblood, who scored 16 points on the evening.
Lehigh hit on only 29 percent of its field goal attempts on the evening and turned the ball over 19 times. Only two Mountain Hawks scored in the second half, with Hall and senior Adam Hyncik putting points on the board in the final 20 minutes. Lehigh grabbed 31 rebounds on the evening, led by junior Bryan White’s nine, while senior Kyle Neptune grabbed six.
Monmouth hit on 48 percent of its field goal attempts, including 50 percent in the second half, and dished out 16 assists on 22 field goals. John Bunch grabbed eight boards off the bench for the Hawks, as the seven-footer also scored seven points. Senior Dejan Delic dished out a team-best six assists for Monmouth, which turned the ball over only nine times for the game.
Lehigh came out slow from the start, falling behind 13-7 after a three-point play by Youngblood at the 14:24 mark of the opening half. Monmouth’s lead would hit double figures when Bunch scored at the 11:37 clip and hovered around double digits for the remainder of the half. Monmouth would enjoy its largest lead of the opening half with 31 ticks left when Delic sank a pair of free throws to make the score 32-18. Lehigh made just five field goals in the opening half and shot 25 percent, while the home team sank 46 percent of its attempts.
In the second half, the Mountain Hawks continued to struggle on the offensive end as Monmouth’s lead ballooned to 24 with 10:08 to o on a three from Delic. Lehigh’s lone bright spot on the evening was Hall, who netted 15 of his points after halftime, including the first ten for the Brown and White in the second half. Every Mountain Hawk who dressed saw time, including sophomore John Gourlay who returned to the lineup for the first time in over a month, playing 11 minutes along the way.
Lehigh returns to action on Tuesday evening when the Mountain Hawks close out the non-league portion of their schedule, welcoming the Columbia Lions to Stabler Arena. Tip-off is set for 7:05 and tickets can be purchased at the arena box office prior to tip-off.
On Thursday, January 4, fans are invited to meet Lehigh head coach Billy Taylor, as well as select student-athletes at the monthly Lehigh basketball luncheon. The event will take place at Starters Restaurant on Route 378 in
