Monday, January 29
Worcester, Mass.
7 p.m.
Lehigh University
9-13, 4-7
71
at
67
Holy Cross
7-15, 4-7
1
2
F
Lehigh
35
36
71
Holy Cross
33
34
67
Lehigh completes regular season sweep of Holy Cross with hard-fought 71-67 road win
1/29/2018 10:30:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Postgame Reaction (Video): Cohen | Head Coach Brett Reed
WORCESTER, Mass. – The Lehigh men's basketball team staged a 16-2 run to begin the second half, then fought off a late Holy Cross charge to pull out a big 71-67 victory at Holy Cross on Monday evening at the Hart Center. The Crusaders went on a late 23-5 run over a 4:16 stretch to pull within two, but the Mountain Hawks (9-13, 4-7 Patriot League) made a key defensive stop when it mattered most to snap a four-game losing streak.
"We can dwell on what we didn't do or where our inefficiencies were, or we could just focus on the fact that these kids came out and they fought. They battled. Their energy level was fantastic," said Lehigh head coach Brett Reed. "Their working together was great. The ball was moving around in some possessions where we barely dribbled and then, it was a hard attack. I was really proud of them. I really was. It would have been great if we didn't have some late turnovers, but nonetheless, when it's all said and done, the guys brought the game to Holy Cross tonight and that's exactly what we wanted to do."
Sophomore Jordan Cohen led the Mountain Hawks with a season-high 19 points, 14 coming in the second half – 12 of which were in their 16-2 run to begin the stanza. Cohen shot 7-of-11 from the field, including 2-of-3 from three-point range, while adding six rebounds, three assists, two steals and a block. As a team, the Mountain Hawks had 10 steals, reaching double figures for the fourth time this season. Senior Kahron Ross added 13 points, 11 in the first half, along with five assists and three steals. Junior Kyle Leufroy scored 12 points, shooting 2-of-3 from three-point range. Sophomore Pat Andree and freshman Caleb Bennett each added eight points.
Neither team led by more than three in the early going until a Ross three-pointer gave the Mountain Hawks a 13-9 lead with 13:35 on the first-half clock. Later in the half, Lehigh created a little separation, using an 8-0 run to break a 22-22 tie. Bennett began the run with five straight points before a Ross three-point play gave Lehigh a 30-22 lead with 5:27 left in the half.
Holy Cross went on to score seven of the final nine first-half points to trim Lehigh's lead to 35-33 following 20 minutes of play.
The Mountain Hawks answered in a big way in the second, beginning the stanza on a 16-2 run. Cohen scored 12 of those points, including a fastbreak layup off a full-court pass from Leufroy, giving Lehigh a 51-35 lead with 13:42 on the clock. In the end, Lehigh's defense allowed just two points over the first seven minutes of the period.
"It was really important that we came out with some energy tonight and we came out and played hard," said Reed. "Our press into the zone allowed us to do that. We had guys who made good breaks on the ball and ultimately, it was really effective for us. Our defensive energy gave us the spark."
Lehigh's lead eventually reached 19 after an Andree trey gave the Mountain Hawks a 61-42 lead with 9:23 remaining. Lehigh continued to lead by 18 after a Bennett trey made the score 64-46, but the Crusaders had one last run in them. After Bennett's triple, Holy Cross staged a 19-3 run as a Jacob Grandison three-pointer pulled the Crusaders within 67-65 with 1:11 still remaining.
Holy Cross would get the ball back in the final minute trailing by two, but Caleb Green missed a three-pointer from the top of the key and freshman James Karnik grabbed a tough rebound. Cohen and Leufroy shot a perfect 4-of-4 from the free throw line in the final seconds to help wrap up the 71-67 win.
Lehigh shot 47 percent for the game (26-of-55), including 52 percent from three-point range (11-of-21). Over their two games against Holy Cross this season, the Mountain Hawks have shot a sizzling 26-of-47 from three-point range (55 percent). Holy Cross finished at 50 percent (25-of-50) from the field, including 31 percent from long distance (8-of-26). Lehigh held a 31-25 edge in rebounds.
Lehigh returns home on Saturday to host Boston University at 2 p.m. on "Throwback Day." The Mountain Hawks then host Bucknell next Monday night (Feb. 5) on CBS Sports Network. Tickets are available and may be purchased online at LehighTickets.com.
Like Lehigh Men's Basketball on Facebook, follow on Twitter and Instagram for exclusive content, team updates and more.
WORCESTER, Mass. – The Lehigh men's basketball team staged a 16-2 run to begin the second half, then fought off a late Holy Cross charge to pull out a big 71-67 victory at Holy Cross on Monday evening at the Hart Center. The Crusaders went on a late 23-5 run over a 4:16 stretch to pull within two, but the Mountain Hawks (9-13, 4-7 Patriot League) made a key defensive stop when it mattered most to snap a four-game losing streak.
"We can dwell on what we didn't do or where our inefficiencies were, or we could just focus on the fact that these kids came out and they fought. They battled. Their energy level was fantastic," said Lehigh head coach Brett Reed. "Their working together was great. The ball was moving around in some possessions where we barely dribbled and then, it was a hard attack. I was really proud of them. I really was. It would have been great if we didn't have some late turnovers, but nonetheless, when it's all said and done, the guys brought the game to Holy Cross tonight and that's exactly what we wanted to do."
Sophomore Jordan Cohen led the Mountain Hawks with a season-high 19 points, 14 coming in the second half – 12 of which were in their 16-2 run to begin the stanza. Cohen shot 7-of-11 from the field, including 2-of-3 from three-point range, while adding six rebounds, three assists, two steals and a block. As a team, the Mountain Hawks had 10 steals, reaching double figures for the fourth time this season. Senior Kahron Ross added 13 points, 11 in the first half, along with five assists and three steals. Junior Kyle Leufroy scored 12 points, shooting 2-of-3 from three-point range. Sophomore Pat Andree and freshman Caleb Bennett each added eight points.
Neither team led by more than three in the early going until a Ross three-pointer gave the Mountain Hawks a 13-9 lead with 13:35 on the first-half clock. Later in the half, Lehigh created a little separation, using an 8-0 run to break a 22-22 tie. Bennett began the run with five straight points before a Ross three-point play gave Lehigh a 30-22 lead with 5:27 left in the half.
Holy Cross went on to score seven of the final nine first-half points to trim Lehigh's lead to 35-33 following 20 minutes of play.
The Mountain Hawks answered in a big way in the second, beginning the stanza on a 16-2 run. Cohen scored 12 of those points, including a fastbreak layup off a full-court pass from Leufroy, giving Lehigh a 51-35 lead with 13:42 on the clock. In the end, Lehigh's defense allowed just two points over the first seven minutes of the period.
"It was really important that we came out with some energy tonight and we came out and played hard," said Reed. "Our press into the zone allowed us to do that. We had guys who made good breaks on the ball and ultimately, it was really effective for us. Our defensive energy gave us the spark."
Lehigh's lead eventually reached 19 after an Andree trey gave the Mountain Hawks a 61-42 lead with 9:23 remaining. Lehigh continued to lead by 18 after a Bennett trey made the score 64-46, but the Crusaders had one last run in them. After Bennett's triple, Holy Cross staged a 19-3 run as a Jacob Grandison three-pointer pulled the Crusaders within 67-65 with 1:11 still remaining.
Holy Cross would get the ball back in the final minute trailing by two, but Caleb Green missed a three-pointer from the top of the key and freshman James Karnik grabbed a tough rebound. Cohen and Leufroy shot a perfect 4-of-4 from the free throw line in the final seconds to help wrap up the 71-67 win.
Lehigh shot 47 percent for the game (26-of-55), including 52 percent from three-point range (11-of-21). Over their two games against Holy Cross this season, the Mountain Hawks have shot a sizzling 26-of-47 from three-point range (55 percent). Holy Cross finished at 50 percent (25-of-50) from the field, including 31 percent from long distance (8-of-26). Lehigh held a 31-25 edge in rebounds.
Lehigh returns home on Saturday to host Boston University at 2 p.m. on "Throwback Day." The Mountain Hawks then host Bucknell next Monday night (Feb. 5) on CBS Sports Network. Tickets are available and may be purchased online at LehighTickets.com.
Like Lehigh Men's Basketball on Facebook, follow on Twitter and Instagram for exclusive content, team updates and more.
Team Stats
LEHIGH
HC
FG%
.473
.500
3FG%
.524
.308
FT%
1.000
.692
RB
31
25
TO
13
13
STL
10
8
Game Leaders
Pts
19
FGM
7
3FGM
2
FTM
3
Pts
13
FGM
5
3FGM
2
FTM
1
Pts
12
FGM
4
3FGM
2
FTM
2
Pts
8
FGM
2
3FGM
2
FTM
2
Players Mentioned
F
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's Basketball
C
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's BasketballG
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