Friday, December 29
Easton, Pa.
7 p.m.
Lehigh University
79
at
74
Lafayette
Mountain Hawks storm back for 79-74 win at Lafayette in PL opener
12/29/2017 11:10:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Postgame Press Conference with Coach Reed and Ross (Video)
EASTON, Pa. - The Lehigh men's basketball team trailed by 10 heading into the final minute of the first half, but outscored archrival Lafayette 47-32 the rest of the way, on its way to an exciting 79-74 Patriot League opening victory on Friday evening at the Kirby Sports Center. A balanced team effort saw five Mountain Hawks score double-figure points, led by senior Kahron Ross' team-leading 17 points. In the process, he became the first player in the program's 100+ year history to go 4-0 at Lafayette in a career. With the win, Lehigh improves to 6-6 on the season, 1-0 in Patriot League play heading into a Tuesday evening showdown at Navy.
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After allowing 42 points in the game's first 18:58, the Mountain Hawks allowed just 32 the rest of the way.
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"The first half, our whole game plan was to be out there and be disruptive and as aggressive as we could, but we were reacting too much instead of dictating," said Lehigh head coach Brett Reed. "Our communication would be just a second late and then somebody's left not in a great position to be able to recover and guard their man. We had a small stretch in the first half that I think really gave us some life, but in the second half, we locked in much more. The number of breakdowns we had on defense reduced. Part of that is, Lafayette plays a style and a system where the ball is flying all over the place. To some degree, it can take a while to adjust."
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"Fortunately, our guys were able to weather the storm and pull together. I thought our communication and our energy supporting each other, even from the bench, was at a very high level. Fortunately, we made enough plays to steal a win."
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Ross added five rebounds and five assists to reach 591 helpers for his career; he now needs nine assists to break the Patriot League career record. Meanwhile, freshman James Karnik continued his strong play, posting 15 points and six boards. Sophomore Pat Andree erupted for 11 points and seven rebounds in the second half, finishing with 11 and 11 for the game, good for his second-career double-double. He finished the second half shooting 4-of-6 from the field, including 3-of-5 from three-point range.
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Junior Kyle Leufroy scored 14 points, including a clutch stepback jumper to give Lehigh a 76-72 lead in the final minute while junior Lance Tejada also had 14 points, shooting 3-of-4 from three-point range. Freshman Marques Wilson dished a career-high three assists in a strong effort off the bench.
(12/29/2017) Men's Basketball at Lafayette, 12/29/17
"I don't think tonight was a thing of beauty for us on offense, but you could see different guys contributing at different points throughout the game and that was really important," said Reed. "That was even a sub storyline of the entire game, whether it's Marques Wilson coming in and playing some very good minutes with under control drives to find easy finishes, Caleb Bennett helping us fuel a little bit of a run in the second half, or Jordan Cohen being part of a nice run with Pat Andree that ultimately helped us get the lead. A lot of people contributed."
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After Lafayette scored first, the Mountain Hawks staged a 6-0 run as a Karnik layup gave Lehigh a 6-2 lead less than two minutes into the contest. The Leopards responded with an 8-0 run to take a 10-6 advantage, but the back-and-forth half continued as five straight Lehigh points, via a Karnik dunk and Tejada three-pointer, helped the Mountain Hawks regain an 11-10 lead with 16:19 still left in the first half.
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The scoring slowed down a bit, but Ross caught fire as he scored eight straight Lehigh points. His second three-pointer gave Lehigh a 19-17 lead with 11:34 left in the stanza
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Lafayette surged ahead, 27-21 with 8:29 on the clock, but a few minutes later, two Leufroy free throws pulled the Mountain Hawks within 27-26. However, Lafayette answered by scoring 15 of the next 21 points to take a 10-point, 42-32 advantage with 1:02 remaining. Lehigh responded by ending the half on a 5-0 run behind a Tejada trey and Ross layup as time expired, to pull within 42-37 following 20 minutes of play.
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Lehigh extended its run to 7-0 following a Caleb Bennett driving layup early in the second half. The Mountain Hawks pulled within 45-43 and 47-45 before the first of three Andree three-pointers gave Lehigh a 49-47 lead with 14:35 on the clock.
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The ensuing minutes saw three ties, but Lafayette never took the lead as Lehigh always had an answer. A 9-2 run capped off by a Karnik three-point play gave Lehigh a 63-56 advantage with 7:11 remaining. Lafayette wouldn't go away, pulling within one at 66-65 following consecutive three-pointers and then pulling back within two at 74-72 following a three-point play with 1:17 on the clock. On the next possession, Leufroy hit a clutch stepback jumper to give the Mountain Hawks a 76-72 advantage. Lehigh converted enough free throws in the final seconds to win its second straight Patriot League opener.
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For the game, Lehigh shot 43 percent from the field (31-of-72), including 45 percent from three-point range (9-of-20). Lafayette finished at 45 percent (28-of-62) and31 percent from long distance (10-of-32). The Mountain Hawks won the battle of the boards, 42-37, including a 25-16 edge in the second half.
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The Mountain Hawks will remain on the road when they travel to Navy on Tuesday (Jan. 2) to face the Midshipmen. Opening tipoff is set for 7 p.m.
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Like Lehigh Men's Basketball on Facebook, follow on Twitter and Instagram for exclusive content, team updates and more.
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EASTON, Pa. - The Lehigh men's basketball team trailed by 10 heading into the final minute of the first half, but outscored archrival Lafayette 47-32 the rest of the way, on its way to an exciting 79-74 Patriot League opening victory on Friday evening at the Kirby Sports Center. A balanced team effort saw five Mountain Hawks score double-figure points, led by senior Kahron Ross' team-leading 17 points. In the process, he became the first player in the program's 100+ year history to go 4-0 at Lafayette in a career. With the win, Lehigh improves to 6-6 on the season, 1-0 in Patriot League play heading into a Tuesday evening showdown at Navy.
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After allowing 42 points in the game's first 18:58, the Mountain Hawks allowed just 32 the rest of the way.
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"The first half, our whole game plan was to be out there and be disruptive and as aggressive as we could, but we were reacting too much instead of dictating," said Lehigh head coach Brett Reed. "Our communication would be just a second late and then somebody's left not in a great position to be able to recover and guard their man. We had a small stretch in the first half that I think really gave us some life, but in the second half, we locked in much more. The number of breakdowns we had on defense reduced. Part of that is, Lafayette plays a style and a system where the ball is flying all over the place. To some degree, it can take a while to adjust."
Â
"Fortunately, our guys were able to weather the storm and pull together. I thought our communication and our energy supporting each other, even from the bench, was at a very high level. Fortunately, we made enough plays to steal a win."
Â
Ross added five rebounds and five assists to reach 591 helpers for his career; he now needs nine assists to break the Patriot League career record. Meanwhile, freshman James Karnik continued his strong play, posting 15 points and six boards. Sophomore Pat Andree erupted for 11 points and seven rebounds in the second half, finishing with 11 and 11 for the game, good for his second-career double-double. He finished the second half shooting 4-of-6 from the field, including 3-of-5 from three-point range.
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Junior Kyle Leufroy scored 14 points, including a clutch stepback jumper to give Lehigh a 76-72 lead in the final minute while junior Lance Tejada also had 14 points, shooting 3-of-4 from three-point range. Freshman Marques Wilson dished a career-high three assists in a strong effort off the bench.
"I don't think tonight was a thing of beauty for us on offense, but you could see different guys contributing at different points throughout the game and that was really important," said Reed. "That was even a sub storyline of the entire game, whether it's Marques Wilson coming in and playing some very good minutes with under control drives to find easy finishes, Caleb Bennett helping us fuel a little bit of a run in the second half, or Jordan Cohen being part of a nice run with Pat Andree that ultimately helped us get the lead. A lot of people contributed."
Â
After Lafayette scored first, the Mountain Hawks staged a 6-0 run as a Karnik layup gave Lehigh a 6-2 lead less than two minutes into the contest. The Leopards responded with an 8-0 run to take a 10-6 advantage, but the back-and-forth half continued as five straight Lehigh points, via a Karnik dunk and Tejada three-pointer, helped the Mountain Hawks regain an 11-10 lead with 16:19 still left in the first half.
Â
The scoring slowed down a bit, but Ross caught fire as he scored eight straight Lehigh points. His second three-pointer gave Lehigh a 19-17 lead with 11:34 left in the stanza
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Lafayette surged ahead, 27-21 with 8:29 on the clock, but a few minutes later, two Leufroy free throws pulled the Mountain Hawks within 27-26. However, Lafayette answered by scoring 15 of the next 21 points to take a 10-point, 42-32 advantage with 1:02 remaining. Lehigh responded by ending the half on a 5-0 run behind a Tejada trey and Ross layup as time expired, to pull within 42-37 following 20 minutes of play.
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Lehigh extended its run to 7-0 following a Caleb Bennett driving layup early in the second half. The Mountain Hawks pulled within 45-43 and 47-45 before the first of three Andree three-pointers gave Lehigh a 49-47 lead with 14:35 on the clock.
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The ensuing minutes saw three ties, but Lafayette never took the lead as Lehigh always had an answer. A 9-2 run capped off by a Karnik three-point play gave Lehigh a 63-56 advantage with 7:11 remaining. Lafayette wouldn't go away, pulling within one at 66-65 following consecutive three-pointers and then pulling back within two at 74-72 following a three-point play with 1:17 on the clock. On the next possession, Leufroy hit a clutch stepback jumper to give the Mountain Hawks a 76-72 advantage. Lehigh converted enough free throws in the final seconds to win its second straight Patriot League opener.
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For the game, Lehigh shot 43 percent from the field (31-of-72), including 45 percent from three-point range (9-of-20). Lafayette finished at 45 percent (28-of-62) and31 percent from long distance (10-of-32). The Mountain Hawks won the battle of the boards, 42-37, including a 25-16 edge in the second half.
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The Mountain Hawks will remain on the road when they travel to Navy on Tuesday (Jan. 2) to face the Midshipmen. Opening tipoff is set for 7 p.m.
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Like Lehigh Men's Basketball on Facebook, follow on Twitter and Instagram for exclusive content, team updates and more.
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