Lehigh University Athletics
First place hoops teams to battle with Lafayette
1/22/2004 12:00:00 AM | Athletics
The Lehigh basketball teams have several things in common heading into this weekend. Both have won their first three Patriot League contests, both will be playing archrival Lafayette on Friday evening and both will be attempting to stay in first place. If the men and the women can pull off the sweep, they will be sitting pretty atop the Patriot League standings. The Mountain Hawks head to Easton for a doubleheader on Friday evening, with the women getting underway at 5:00 and the men scheduled to tip-off at 8:00.
In a matchup dubbed the “Game of the Night” on ESPN.com, the Lehigh and Lafayette men will square off on Friday evening for the 199th time, with both teams coming in undefeated in league play for the first time ever. The Mountain Hawks are once again off to a 3-0 start in Patriot League action and will be looking to go to 4-0 for the second straight year. With its 63-58 overtime victory against American on Saturday, Lehigh secured its second straight 10-win campaign for the first time since the 1994 and 1995 seasons. Lehigh is led by senior guard Austen Rowland, who is averaging 14.5 points per contest, good for fourth in the Patriot League and freshman Jose Olivero, who is hitting for 13.5 tallies per night, which puts him in sixth place in the league. Rowland has been especially hot of late, averaging 20 points and five assists in his last five contests. On the interior, junior Earl Nurse has been a force for the Mountain Hawks all season long, as he is pulling down five rebounds a night, good for fifth in the Patriot League and he is also blocking 1.12 shots, placing him in second place in the league. Lafayette is coming off of a hard fought 60-58 overtime win against Holy Cross in Worcester on January 17. Senior Justin DeBerry scored all seven Leopard points in the extra session on his way to 19 for the game. Junior Sean Knitter came off of the bench to provide a spark as he hit for 13 points on the afternoon. Lafayette has had the upper hand in the all-time series and especially of late, having won seven of the last nine meetings in Easton. The game will be a reunion of sorts as Rowland and Knitter both played at Delaware before transferring to their respective schools. During their time in Newark, Rowland averaged 8.5 points in 88 career games, while Knitter knocked in 4.2 tallies per contest in 51 appearances. Friday’s tip-off is scheduled for 8:00 from Lafayette’s Kirby Sports Center. The game can be seen live on WFMZ Channel 69 in the Lehigh Valley and nationwide on DirecTV channel 615. The contest will also be broadcasted live via radio on WKAP-AM (1470) in the Lehigh Valley, and around the world on the Internet at lehighsports.com. The women return to Patriot League play as the Mountain Hawks visit archrival Lafayette for the first of two league road games. The Mountain Hawks are off to their best-ever start in league play, winning their first three contests against Patriot League opponents. Lehigh sits alone atop the league standings at 3-0. Patriot League Player of the Week Jessica DePalo is averaging 24 points and nine rebounds per outing against league foes. Freshman of the Week Sara Ellis is shooting 56% in the three wins, averaging 15.7 points per game. Despite being winless, the Leopards have had several close calls and are poised to get over the hump. Colleen Fitzpatrick leads Lafayette at 15.4 points and 6.3 rebounds per game. Lehigh is looking to avenge last season’s 72-71 defeat in Easton. The Leopards lead the all-time series 34-24, though Lehigh has won six of the last seven contests. The Mountain Hawks are 5-3 all-time against the Leopards at the Kirby Sports Center under head coach Sue Troyan. Under Troyan’s guidance, the Mountain Hawks have a 20-7 against the Leopards through her first eight seasons. Friday’s game tips off at 5:00, and the action can be heard live on WLVR-FM in the Lehigh Valley, as well as on Lehigh’s web site at Lehighsports.com, with streaming provided by Yahoo! Sports. RCN 4 and WBPH-TV in Bethlehem will televise the contest live.
