Wednesday, January 24
Bethlehem, Pa.
7 p.m.

Lehigh University

8-12, 3-6PL

88
vs
91

Loyola

6-14, 4-5PL

1
2
OT 1
OT 2
F
Loyola
28
44
7
12
91
Lehigh
38
34
7
9
88

Mountain Hawks drop double overtime heartbreak to Loyola, 91-88

1/24/2018 10:41:00 PM | Men's Basketball

BETHLEHEM, Pa. - The Lehigh men's basketball team jumped out to a 17-point first-half lead and led by 11 with 4:37 remaining, but Loyola forced 15 second-half turnovers, including six in a late second-half burst, as it went on to hand the Mountain Hawks a crushing 91-88 double overtime defeat on Wednesday evening in Stabler Arena. Freshman Marques Wilson paced five Mountain Hawks (8-12, 3-6 Patriot League) who scored in double figures, scoring 19 points, 15 coming in the first half. Lehigh will look to snap its three-game losing skid on Saturday when it hosts Navy at 7 p.m.
 
"It's really disappointing. I'm sitting here heartbroken, heartbroken for our guys," said Lehigh head coach Brett Reed. "You're talking four minutes left and being up by that margin, if we take care of the basketball, we're probably walking out with a different outcome. We didn't always turn the ball over by the sideline; we also turned it over in the middle third of the floor. It wasn't always just on the catch; sometimes, it was on the second or third pass."
 
Wilson finished with 19 points on 6-of-8 shooting, including 3-of-4 from three-point range. Junior Lance Tejada scored 15 points, 12 coming after halftime as he finished 4-of-9 from three-point range. Senior Kahron Ross had 15 points, six assists and two blocks while freshman Caleb Bennett recorded a career-high 12 points, four rebounds, a block and steal. Sophomore Pat Andree tallied 11 points and eight rebounds, shooting 3-of-4 from three-point range.
 
"Marques gave us a nice spark and really gave us great energy," said Reed. "He also made a couple defensive plays. If you start thinking about the ways he got deflections and his hands on the basketball, that was positive to see. I believe we do have some things to build on. Going out and being ready to compete immediately was a really promising sign. Lately, we've struggled to establish ourselves, so I was really pleased that we were able to see a strong start."
 
The Mountain Hawks jumped out to an early 17-4 lead, sparked by Wilson, who scored Lehigh's first eight points and 12 of its first 15. A Jordan Cohen fastbreak layup gave Lehigh a 17-4 lead with 13:10 remaining in the first half.
 
Lehigh continued to hold a commanding lead through most of the first half as a Wilson layup gave the Mountain Hawks a 33-16 advantage with 5:20 on the clockand then a Caleb Sedore layup gave Lehigh a 35-18 lead.
 
From there, the Mountain Hawks' offense went cold and Loyola ended the half on a 10-3 run to pull within 38-28 after 20 minutes of play.
 
The Greyhounds quickly pulled within six just over two minutes into the second, pulling as close as three after two Loyola free throws trimmed Lehigh's lead to 44-41. Five straight Andree points gave Lehigh an eight-point cushion, Loyola responded, but the Mountain Hawks went on to reopen a double-digit lead as a Bennett layup gave the Mountain Hawks a 64-53 advantage with 5:12 on the clock. After two Ross free throws, the Mountain Hawks turned the ball over six straight times amidst Loyola's pressure and the Greyhounds took advantage, turning an 11-point deficit into a two-point Loyola lead in the span of 2:27.
 
Andree three gave Lehigh a 71-70 lead less than a minute later, Loyola's Cam Gregory converted a layup on the other end, but Tejada hit a free throw with 10 seconds remaining to even the score at 72 and force overtime.
 
Neither team led by more than two in the first overtime. Three straight Lehigh free throws turned a one-point deficit into a 79-77 lead with 1:14 remaining, but a Gregory layup with 51 seconds on the clock tied the score at 79 to help force a second overtime period.
 
Tejada knocked down a pair of threes in the first 1:15 of the second OT to give Lehigh a four-point lead, but the Greyhounds responded with a 10-0 run to take a 91-85 lead. Junior Kyle Leufroy hit a three-pointer with 11 seconds on the clock, the Greyhounds missed both free throws to give Lehigh a chance. In the final seconds, Ross missed a three-pointer, Andree got the rebound and kicked the ball to Tejada who just missed at the buzzer as Loyola survived.
 
For the game, the Mountain Hawks shot 48 percent from the field (30-of-63), including 48 percent from three-point range (12-of-25). Loyola shot 38 percent (30-of-79), including 31 percent from long distance (4-of-13). The Greyhounds knocked down 27-of-43 free throws (63 percent) while Lehigh took 21 less free throws, but finished at 73 percent from the line (16-of-22). The Greyhounds held a 50-37 edge in rebounds. Lehigh turned the ball over a season-high 23 times.
 
Lehigh remains home Saturday to host Navy at 7 p.m. as part of Coaches vs. Cancer Suits and Sneakers Week. Tickets for Saturday's game are available online at LehighTickets.com or by clicking here.
 
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Team Stats

LOYOLA
LEHIGH
FG%
.380
.476
3FG%
.308
.480
FT%
.628
.727
RB
50
37
TO
14
23
STL
15
7

Game Leaders

Pts
19
FGM
6
3FGM
3
FTM
4
Pts
15
FGM
5
3FGM
1
FTM
4
Pts
15
FGM
4
3FGM
4
FTM
3
Pts
12
FGM
4
3FGM
0
FTM
4

Players Mentioned

F
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's Basketball
C
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's Basketball
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