Lehigh University Athletics
Reed, Hall and Buchberger take part in Media Day
10/30/2009 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
 |
BETHLEHEM, Pa. – Lehigh moved one step closer towards it upcoming season opener on Friday as head coach Brett Reed was joined by senior captains Dave Buchberger and Marquis Hall at Media Day, held inside Taylor Gym on the Packer Campus. Various media members had a chance to chat with the three Mountain Hawks and discuss how early season practice has gone, expectations for the season and also to take a look ahead to the opener in two weeks.
Reed spoke of Lehigh’s off season and what the Mountain Hawks have been up to during the first several weeks of practice. “We had a productive off season and have continued to progress throughout these first few practices. The thing I really like is our senior leadership and how vocal that group has been.” He continued, “We have a nice group of young talent and are continuing to get ourselves in shape while also laying the foundation of our offensive and defensive systems so we’ve been busy throughout the early stages.”
Reed then commented on the newest Mountain Hawks. “Our freshmen are probably like most around the country in that they are searching for consistency on a day-to-day basis. They are constantly trying to learn and improve. I feel like it’s a strong class overall and will increase our depth.”
Hall spoke of how quickly his time in the Brown and White went. “My first three years have gone by incredibly fast. This senior year is a time that I’m going to cherish and make the most of.” He then commented on areas he has improved in throughout his career. “I’ve focused on improving my strength and I feel like I was able to make gains in that area throughout the off-season. Other than that I’ve just been trying to get sharper with my ball handling and shooting and improve my quickness.”
Buchberger added his thoughts on his Lehigh career. “Individually I’ve learned the importance of being assertive and aggressive. I’m trying to be a more vocal leader this season and helping out my younger teammates. Collectively as a team we’ve learned that we need to be more consistent. If you look at last year we went 10-4 in the non-league portion of our schedule but we didn’t fare as well once we got into Patriot League play so we’re looking to improve on that and be more consistent.”
Hall, who garnered preseason Patriot League Player of the Year honors on Thursday spoke of his early season recognition. “The personal accolades are nice but for me it’s all about winning that championship so that is my focus for the season.” He then commented on the Mountain Hawks’ focus throughout the early portion of practice. “I’m focusing on being more of a vocal leader and just trying get better every day. We need to stay focused on ourselves and do our job.”
Buchberger, one of four senior captains, spoke of Lehigh’s high expectations for the upcoming season. “Our expectations are that we want to win the league championship and play at a championship level throughout the year. We have two of the best players in the entire Patriot League in Marquis (Hall) and Zahir (Carrington) and this is the most talented and unified team I’ve been on since I’ve been at Lehigh so we expect great things from this team.”
Lehigh was picked to finish second in the Patriot League preseason poll but Reed knows that won’t mean much unless the Mountain Hawks can live up to the lofty expectations. “It’s nice to know that we’re gaining respect around the Patriot League. We’ve been growing the program for the past couple of years and I think it’s a matter of if we can become more consistent as a unit. We have two of the more well rounded individuals in the league in Marquis and Zahir, and now we need to see how the others around them step up to meet the challenge.”
Lehigh will open its 2009-10 season two weeks from today as the Mountain Hawks travel to Virginia to take on the University of Richmond. Tip-off is set for 7:00 and all of the action will be broadcast live on ESPN Radio 1230 and 1320 as well as Lehighsports.com with ESPN Radio’s Matt Markus on the call. Pre-game coverage will get underway at 6:30.
Lehigh Men's Basketball 2009-10 Media Day
