Mountain Hawks meet No. 1 Kansas on Thursday
3/15/2010 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
 |
BETHLEHEM, Pa. - Lehigh heads to Oklahoma City to take part in the 2010 NCAA Tournament in the Midwest Regional at Ford Center. The 16th seeded Mountain Hawks will take on number-one overall seed Kansas on Thursday evening with the winner advancing to Saturday’s second round to face either No. 8 UNLV or No. 9 Northern Iowa. Lehigh defeated archrival Lafayette 74-59 on March 12 to win the 2010 Patriot League championship and earn its fourth automatic berth into the Big Dance. Tournament MVP Zahir Carrington led the way for Lehigh with 18 points, 10 rebounds and four blocked shots, while C.J. McCollum, the nation’s number-one scoring freshman, netted 20 points en route to earning a spot on the All-Tournament Team.
Lehigh is one of only seven schools in America whose men’s and women’s basketball programs earned an automatic bid to the 2010 NCAA Tournament. The other six schools are Duke, East Tennessee State, Northern Iowa, Ohio State, San Diego State and Vermont.
C.J. McCollum is the first Lehigh player to score 500 points in a single season since Jose Olivero netted 508 during the 2006-07 season. McCollum needs ten more points to move into sole possession of fourth place in school annals for single season scoring.
Lehigh’s 22 wins this season are the most in school history. The Mountain Hawks have posted three of the winningest seasons in school annals with Brett Reed on the coaching staff (2003-04, 2005-06, 2009-10).
Tickets for Lehigh’s first-round NCAA Tournament contest went on sale to alumni, season ticket holders and members of the Lehigh community on Monday morning beginning at 10:00. All orders must be made by phone or in person at the Lehigh Athletics Ticket Office, located in Grace Hall. One ticket will grant admission into one session of games (two total games) and the cost is $68 per ticket. Tickets for the general public will go on sale beginning at 10:00 on Tuesday morning.
Fans can tune into listen to the Mountain Hawks take on the Jayhawks on Thursday live on ESPN Radio 1230 and 1320 with veteran Matt Kerr and Jeff Tourial calling the action. Pre-game coverage will begin 30 minutes prior to tip-off.
|
Date: |
March 18, 2010 |
|
Opponent: |
No. 1 Kansas Jayhawks |
|
Tip-off: |
9:40 EDT |
|
Arena/Capacity: |
Ford Center/17,611 |
|
Location: |
Oklahoma City, Okla. |
|
No. 16 Lehigh’s Record: |
22-10 overall, 10-4 Patriot League |
|
No. 1 Kansas’ Record: |
32-2 overall, 15-1 Big 12 |
|
Series: |
First Meeting |
|
Radio: |
Live on ESPN Radio 1230 and 1320 with Matt Kerr and Jeff Tourial. Pre-game coverage gets underway 30 minutes prior to tip-off |
|
Television: |
Live on CBS with Kevin Harlan and Dan Bonner |
|
Behind Enemy Lines: |
