Tuesday, November 26
Brookings, S.D.
9:00 PM
Lehigh University
2-5
61
at
74
South Dakota State
3-4
1
2
F
Lehigh
23
38
61
South Dakota St.
35
39
74
Second half surge falls short in 74-61 loss at South Dakota State
11/26/2013 11:38:00 PM | Men's Basketball
BROOKINGS, S.D. - The Lehigh men's basketball team trimmed a 12-point halftime deficit down to three, but South Dakota State proved too much in a 74-61 loss on Tuesday evening. Senior Mackey McKnight scored 21 points, including 18 in the second half to eclipse 1,000 career points. Freshman Austin Price added nine points while junior Corey Schaefer posted eight. The Mountain Hawks wrap up the Legends Classic along with their long November road swing and head home for their next game, Sunday vs. Sacred Heart in Stabler Arena.
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Lehigh struggled to contain tournament MVP Jordan Dykstra. The senior finished with 32 points and 13 rebounds, finishing 8-of-14 from the field and 12-of-13 from the free throw line.
"When you start talking about a team with experience and knows how to win and you have a player with the talent of Dykstra, it makes for a difficult matchup," said Lehigh head coach Brett Reed. "We actually closed the game to three points then he and (Brayden) Carlson went on a personal scoring streak to elevate the game back to 10. As a young team, we're learning how to play in those situations. As an experienced team, South Dakota State was able to withstand some of our push and ultimately their better players, Dykstra in particular, really answered the call when their team needed it."
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McKnight's 21 points came on 9-of-22 shooting as he was named to the All-Tournament Team following his nine-point, four-assist effort in Monday's win over Texas Southern.
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McKnight becomes the 32nd player in school history, and sixth in as many seasons, to eclipse 1,000 career points. A jumper with 10:38 remaining in the second half gave him 11 points for the game and 1,0001 for his career. He follows Marquis Hall (2008-09 season), Zahir Carrington (2009-10), C.J. McCollum (2010-11), Gabe Knutson (2011-12) and Holden Greiner (2012-13) who reached the milestone in each of the last five seasons.
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Schaefer had five rebounds along with his eight points. Freshman Tim Kempton had five points and his second straight eight-rebound game. The Mountain Hawks finished with a season-high 10 steals, led by three from McKnight. Freshman Miles Simelton was a spark off the bench with four points and two steals in 13 minutes.
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South Dakota State broke the ice just over a minute into the game, but sophomore Jesse Chuku answered with a long jumper to even the score. The Jackrabbits then went on a 7-0 run to take a 9-2 lead following a Dykstra three with 15:34 on the clock.
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Lehigh responded with three straight points behind a McKnight free throw and Schaefer jumper to pull within 9-5 with 14:23 on the clock.
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South Dakota State extended its lead to double figures as a Chad White jumper made it 19-9 just over two minutes later
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Down 21-11, Lehigh got baskets from sophomore Justin Goldsborough and Kempton to pull within 21-15, but the Jackrabbits scored seven of the next nine points as an offensive rebound and dunk made it 28-17 with 4:43 remaining, forcing Reed to call timeout.
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The lead swelled to 14 (35-21) following a Cody Larson dunk, but Chuku got a big offensive rebound and putback to pull Lehigh within 35-23 at the half.
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Schaefer led the way with six first-half points while Chuku and Kempton each had four. Dykstra led South Dakota State with 13 points. The Mountain Hawks shot 42 percent from the field (11-of-26) while the Jackrabbits came in at 56 percent (15-of-27). Lehigh didn't make a three (0-of-6) while South Dakota State hit 40 percent (4-of-10).
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The Jacrabbits knocked down a three to start the second half, but Lehigh immediately responded with 10 straight points which included a threes from Chuku and Price and a pair of McKnight layups to make it 38-33 with 16:23 remaining.
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After a McKnight jumper extended the run to 12-0 and pulled Lehigh within three (38-35), South Dakota State ended a seven-minute scoreless drought with a free throw to make it 39-35. A Dykstra three extended the lead to six, but Schaefer answered to make it 42-38 with 11:44 on the clock.
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South Dakota State began to slowly build its lead, reaching nine on several occasions. The lead reached 13 (57-44) with 7:27 remaining, but Lehigh wouldn't go quietly. Two straight baskets, from McKnight and Simelton, pulled the Mountain Hawks right back within nine with 6:55 remaining.
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A McKnight free throw made it 60-51, but the Jackrabbits answered with a 12-0 run to erase any doubt as two Dykstra free throws made it 72-51 with 2:06 on the clock. Lehigh went on to score 10 of the game's final 12 points behind a pair of Price threes, a McKnight layup and Goldsborough offensive rebound and jumper as time expired, for the 74-61 final.
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Lehigh shot 43 percent from the field (26-of-60) and 33 percent from three-point range (5-of-15). South Dakota State finished at 46 percent (25-of-54) and 50 percent (10-of-20) from long distance. The Jackrabbits held a 39-28 edge in rebounds.
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The Mountain Hawks will return home after a five-game swing to host Sacred Heart on Sunday at 2 p.m. Tickets are available online by clicking here, including a print-at-home option, or by calling the ticket office at 610-7LU-GAME (610-758-4263). Individual game tickets are only five dollars and season tickets are also available.
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Team Stats
LEHIGH
SDSU
FG%
.433
.463
3FG%
.333
.500
FT%
.444
.875
RB
28
39
TO
7
14
STL
10
3
Game Leaders
Pts
21
FGM
9
3FGM
1
FTM
2
Pts
9
FGM
3
3FGM
3
FTM
0
Pts
8
FGM
4
3FGM
0
FTM
0
Pts
8
FGM
3
3FGM
1
FTM
1
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