Lehigh University Athletics
Mountain Hawks begin preparation for '08-09
10/17/2008 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
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BETHLEHEM, Pa. – Lehigh hits the hardwood for the official start of basketball season on Friday afternoon at Stabler Arena as the Mountain Hawks begin their quest for a Patriot League Championship. Second year head coach Brett Reed leads a talented, but young squad that returns every player from a season ago except one. Reed spoke of what the Mountain Hawks hoped to accomplish during the off season. “Our focus throughout the offseason and into the preseason was careful consideration of improvement. We asked our players to improve their skills and their strength, and through that, to improve their consistency both mentally and physically.” He added, “My goal for our younger players was to not only get a year older, but to use the year to become markedly better as basketball players.”
With one full year under his belt, Reed is excited about leading the newest edition of the Mountain Hawks. “The biggest difference for me between the first year and this second year is the amount of mental planning that goes into the specifics of this particular team for this particular season.” He continued, “I hope to adhere to the foundations of the principals that have been in place for the six years (that I have been on the Lehigh coaching staff), yet still be able to tailor some of the systems and techniques that we will approach to match the skill sets of our players that will be impacting our performance on the floor.”
Junior captain and 2008 All-Patriot League selection Marquis Hall discusses the biggest difference from his perspective with Reed being in his second season. “The biggest difference is that now I understand his style of coaching and his personality a little better. I have a better understanding of what he wants to accomplish with the team as a whole and how he wants to get there.”
After leading the Mountain Hawks in scoring a season ago, Hall has established himself as one of Lehigh’s go-to players. But that didn’t stop him from working to improve his game throughout the summer months. “I tried to improve a lot of things during the off season, starting with becoming a better point guard for the team in general. I worked a lot on ball handling, shooting off of the dribble, my defense, finding different ways to score within the offense, and I learned a lot about being a better leader for the team.”
During the first several days of practice, Hall says “the focus should be on just playing hard and competing to make one another better.” Reed echoes those sentiments. “Our focus in the early going is to establish a foundation which we will ultimately grow upon. Offensively I hope that we can establish a greater sophistication in our attack and give our players with offensive weapons an opportunity to utilize their skills while still maintaining a team approach to our attack.”
Reed then commented on the newest members of the team, freshmen John Adams, Jordan Hamilton and Justin Maneri. “Unfortunately several of our freshmen experienced off season injuries and the preseason has been more designed to get them healthy rather than extended repetitions within our skill instruction groups. We are now at the point where they (the freshmen) have an opportunity to experience our system and a high level of basketball competition in a practice setting. This will require them to pick up and be able to execute new things they learn in a short period of time.”
The Mountain Hawks return four starters from a season ago, including each of the last two Patriot League Rookies of the Year in Hall and Rob Keefer, as well as senior captain Matt Szalachowski and junior captain Zahir Carrington. Other returners include seniors Phil Anderson and John Gourlay, juniors Dave Buchbeger and Matt Shamis and sophomores Michael Ojo, Luke Pelullo, David Safstrom and Prentice Small.
Lehigh opens the 2008-09 season on Saturday, November 15 versus St. Peter’s in Jersey City, New Jersey at 4:00. The game will be broadcast live on ESPN Radio 1230 and 1320 AM as well as Lehighsports.com. The Mountain Hawks open their home schedule on Monday, November 17 versus Delaware State at Stabler Arena. Tip-off is set for 7:00 and tickets can be purchased in one of three ways: by calling 610-7LU-GAME, by visiting the Lehigh Athletics Ticket Office, located in Grace Hall during normal business hours, or by logging onto Lehighsports.com.
Photography 2008, (c) Brian Tahmosh
