Saturday, December 7
2:00 PM

Lehigh University

70
vs
68

UMBC

Balanced effort leads Lehigh past UMBC, 70-68

12/7/2013 5:16:00 PM | Men's Basketball



BETHLEHEM, Pa. - Behind five players in double figures, the Lehigh men's basketball team erased a halftime deficit to down UMBC 70-68 on Saturday afternoon for its third straight win. Freshman Tim Kempton scored a team-high 13 points while senior Mackey McKnight, and freshmen Austin Price and Shane Whitfield added 11 points apiece. The Mountain Hawks have now won four of their last five games and improve to 5-5 on the season.
 
Neither team led by more than seven points.
 
"Ultimately, this was a gritty game," said Lehigh head coach Brett Reed. "This was a UMBC team that was going to extend its pressure defense with fairly quick guards, some size, some mass and an aggressive mentality. For us to be in that type of position, and still be able to come through with a win, continues to build some confidence. I think confidence is very important for a younger team."
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Junior Corey Schaefer was also in double figures, scoring 10 points including 7-of-8 from the free throw line. Sophomore Jesse Chuku added eight points and nine rebounds, just missing his second double-double in as many home games.
 
Whitfield's career-high 11 points came on 3-of-5 shooting while he also added two rebounds, two assists, a block and steal. Kempton was also 3-of-5 from the field and 7-of-9 from the free throw line, including a perfect 4-of-4 in the final minute. Kempton added eight rebounds and now has 23 boards over the last two games.
 
McKnight added eight assists and a season-high four steals. He now has 29 assists over the first three home games and in the process, moved into third place in school history with 44 career assists.
 
The Mountain Hawks were outrebounded 25-13 in the first half, but held a 19-13 edge in the second. Chase Plummer led the Retrievers with 21 points and seven rebounds.
 
"It was a very physical game," said Reed. "They had some big bodies. Plummer in particular, is a thick, strong individual and he's not afraid to throw his size around. That created some problems for us as far as guarding in the post.
 
"A tell-tale sign was that we allowed three offensive rebounds in the second half and got five ourselves," Reed continued. "We turned the complexion of the rebounding game, which gave us a little bit more of an opportunity."
 
McKnight got the scoring started with a pair of free throws with 17:18 left in the first half. Two UMBC threes gave the Retrievers a 6-4 lead, but McKnight found Kempton for a layup to even the score with 12:19 on the clock.
 
Freshman Miles Simelton pushed the ball up the court and found sophomore Justin Goldsborough for a layup to give Lehigh its first lead (8-7). The ensuing possession, Simelton made a steal and found Whitfield ahead with a nifty bounce pass which ended in a three-point play to make it 11-7 with 9:19 remaining.
 
Price began to heat up, knocking down a pair of threes in just over two minutes. The second gave Lehigh a 20-18 lead with 4:54 left in the half. The Retrievers went on a 7-1 run to take a 25-21 lead following an Aaron Morgan three-pointer, but a Schaefer three and Whitfield free throw helped the Mountain Hawks pull within 26-25 after 20 minutes of play.
 
Whitfield and Price each scored seven first-half points while McKnight had three assists. Lehigh shot 37 percent (7-of-19) and 33 percent from three-point range (3-of-9) while the Retrievers shot 30 percent (9-of-30) and 31 percent from long distance (4-of-13).
 
 
A Chuku three gave Lehigh a 28-26 lead, but UMBC responded with a 7-0 run to take a 33-28 lead with 17:04 remaining.
 
The Mountain Hawks promptly staged an 11-0 run of their own, which began with a Kempton three-point play, and continued with threes from Chuku and McKnight, to give Lehigh a 37-33 lead with 14:30 on the clock. The run ended with a Whitfield layup, then after a UMBC free throw, McKnight finished a coast-to-coast layup to give the Mountain Hawks their largest lead (41-34) with 11:19 on the clock.
 
Just over a minute later, Whitfield found Goldsborough on a 2-on-1 who finished an emphatic dunk that made it 43-39.
 
The lead hovered between three and six over the ensuing minutes as a Plummer three-point play made it 49-46 with 7:05 remaining.
 
UMBC wouldn't go away as Plummer pulled the Retrievers back within two (60-58) following a pair of free throws with 1:16 on the clock. Kempton knocked down four free throws in the final minute to help Lehigh go up five (66-61) with 35 seconds to go. The lead swelled to seven, but the Retrievers scored five straight to make it 68-66.
 
Single free throws by McKnight and Schaefer made it 70-68 with 10 seconds on the clock. Rodney Elliott had one last chance, but his drive ended in a missed shot and Chuku grabbed the rebound to preserve the victory.
 
Lehigh finished at 45 percent from the field (19-of-42) and 43 percent from three-point range (6-of-14). UMBC shot 41 percent (23-of-56) and 40 percent from long distance (8-of-20). The Retrievers won the battle of the boards, 38-32.
 
The Mountain Hawks return to Stabler Arena in two days when they host LIU Brooklyn on Monday. Then, following a 12-day break for final exams, Lehigh will welcome Quinnipiac on Saturday, Dec. 21. Tickets are available online, 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 (in advance) and season tickets are also available.

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