Lehigh opens season at St. John’s Wednesday in ESPN2 showdown
11/7/2011 4:50:00 PM | Men's Basketball
BETHLEHEM, Pa. - The Lehigh men's basketball team kicks off its much-anticipated 2011-12 season on Wednesday when it travels to St. John's as part of the 2K Sports Classic benefiting Coaches vs. Cancer. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. and will air live nation-wide on ESPN2 with Bob Wischusen and Len Elmore on the call. The game can also be viewed on ESPN3.com.
The Mountain Hawks enter the year with high hopes following a Patriot League Semifinal defeat at Bucknell to end last season. With 76.9 percent of the team's scoring and 78.4 percent of its rebounding returning, Lehigh enters with a mix of veterans and youngsters who look to lead the Mountain Hawks to their second Patriot League Championship in the last three seasons.
Leading the way is junior and Patriot League Preseason Player of the Year C.J. McCollum, who owns the distinction of being the nation's leading returning scorer (21.8 points per game). His stock continues to rise; McCollum was invited to USA Basketball's World University Games over the summer and has received numerous mentions from national publications as one of the players to watch in NCAA Division I Basketball.
Wednesday marks the start of a busy first week for the Mountain Hawks, who will travel to Iowa just two days later to prepare for a Saturday afternoon showdown at Iowa State of the Big 12. That marks the second of three nonleague contests against BCS Conference foes (also a Dec. 22 tilt at Michigan State of the Big Ten). The game against the Spartans will also air on the ESPN family of networks (ESPNU). St. John's and Michigan State are two of four 2011 NCAA Tournament teams Lehigh will face, in addition to Saint Peter's and Bucknell.
The Mountain Hawks are looking to top a Big East team for the first time since Nov. 26, 2008 when they downed Rutgers, 76-71. Lehigh is looking to snap a two-game season-opening losing streak; after defeating Saint Peter's in the 2008-09 season opener, the Mountain Hawks have fallen at Richmond (65-53) and Penn State (70-56) in each of their last two openers.
This marks the eighth straight season Lehigh has opened its season away from home. The last time the Mountain Hawks opened in Stabler Arena was on Nov. 21, 2003 against Long Island. The Nov. 9 tipoff marks the earliest Lehigh will play a regular season game in program history. The Mountain Hawks have played twice on Nov. 10: at Oregon in 2006 and at Cornell the following season.
Freshman forward Conroy Baltimore will be playing close to home on Wednesday. The Bronx, N.Y. native enjoyed a standout career at Archbishop Stepinac, capped off by First Team All-State honors as a senior. The Bronx is approximately 10-15 miles from St. John's campus in Queens.
Riding a strong senior class, St. John's returned to the NCAA Tournament last season in Steve Lavin's first season as head coach. The Red Storm finished fifth in the Big East with a 12-6 mark (21-12 overall). Among the 10 departed seniors is First Team All-Big East honoree Dwight Hardy, who averaged 18.3 points per game. Justin Brownlee (12.3 PPG), D.J. Kennedy (10.4), Paris Horne (7.9) and Justin Burrell (6.3) all graduated as well. Junior Malik Stith is St. John's lone returnee who saw significant minutes a season ago, averaging 3.3 points and 0.8 rebounds.
Only nine student-athletes are currently on St. John's roster due to a September ruling by the NCAA that three individuals were academically ineligible and would miss the fall semester. The current roster features five freshmen, a sophomore and three juniors. Among its No. 3 recruiting class in the nation, St. John's has welcomed transfers to its roster as well, led by junior college transfer “God'sgift Achiuwa” who finished last season ninth in the NJCAA in scoring (22.3), 10th in rebounding (11.7) and 17th in blocks (2.2).
Lehigh and St. John's have only faced each other twice in their history: during the 1908-09 and 1929-30 seasons. Lehigh won the first-ever meeting, 56-25 before St. John's responded with a 38-25 victory in 1929-30.
The Mountain Hawks have a short turnaround as they head to Iowa State for a Saturday afternoon showdown against the Cyclones. Tipoff is set for 2 p.m. Eastern (1 p.m. local time). Tickets for all home games are now on sale and may be purchased on Lehighsports.com or by calling the ticket office at (610) 7LU-GAME.
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Date:
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November 9, 2011
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Opponent:
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St. John's Red Storm
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Tip-off:
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7:00 PM
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Arena/Capacity:
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Carnesecca Arena/6,008
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Location:
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Queens, N.Y.
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Lehigh's Record:
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0-0 overall, 0-0 Patriot League
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St. John's Record:
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0-0 overall, 0-0 Big East (St. John's hosts William & Mary Monday night)
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Series:
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Series tied, 1-1
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Radio:
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Live on ESPN Radio 1230 and 1320 and Lehighsports.com with Matt Kerr and Steve Lomangino. Pregame coverage gets underway at 6:30.
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Television:
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ESPN2/ESPN3.com
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Internet Video:
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Behind Enemy Lines:
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