Saturday, January 19
Bethlehem, Pa.
12 p.m.
Lehigh University
11-6, 4-2PL
83
vs
85
Bucknell
11-7, 5-1PL
1
2
F
Bucknell
43
42
85
Lehigh
41
42
83
Photo by: Hannahally Photography
Mountain Hawks drop last-second heartbreaker to Bucknell, 85-83
1/19/2019 5:43:00 PM | Men's Basketball
BETHLEHEM, Pa. – In a game which saw neither team lead by more than two possessions, a 10-0 Bucknell run in the final five minutes gave it a six-point lead, Lehigh stormed back with five points in an eight-second span to tie, but Jimmy Sotos came down the other end and finished a tough shot to give the Bison an 85-83 win on Saturday afternoon in Stabler Arena. The loss marked the Mountain Hawks' first of the season at home, as they fall to 11-6 overall and 4-2 in Patriot League play, one game behind Bucknell who's currently in first at 5-1.
Â
Down by five after a Sotos free throw with 18 seconds remaining, senior Lance Tejada knocked down a three-pointer, then the Mountain Hawks forced a steal on the end line and Tejada found a cutting Pat Andree, who finished the layup with eight seconds remaining. Â
However, Sotos came down the other and drove to his right before banking a tough shot home with just over one second on the clock.
Â
"They score right at the end, but it's any of those possessions throughout the course of the game [that hurt us]," said Lehigh head coach Brett Reed. "We gave up far too many points in the paint and we had miscommunication at times. Earlier in the second half, we scored then jogged back on defense and Kimbal Mackenzie, who's a great shooter, gets an open three right in front of their bench. Those mistakes and those little lapses, in whether it's judgement or focus, are the things that stand out the most."
Â
Senior Kyle Leufroy led Lehigh's offense with a career-high 26 points, eight rebounds, five assists and three steals. He was 6-of-9 from three-point range as the Mountain Hawks finished 14-of-23 on the afternoon, their third game this season over 60 percent. Tejada added 15 points, 12 coming in the first half, and seven assists. Sophomore James Karnik just missed his third straight double-double at home with 14 points and nine rebounds. Andree scored 14, including 3-of-5 shooting behind the arc.
Â
"We ended up showing good heart towards the end," said Reed. "We read the situation as far as being down and having to foul right away and not having any timeouts. Fortunately, we were able to come up with the steal and the score. Then Jimmy Sotos made a great play, but that's no different than what we were doing all day. Bucknell's commitment to push the ball from the end line to the elbow was evident all day and it really became a factor in putting us on our heels. It's almost fitting that the game would end that way because that's what they were looking to do the whole game."
Â
Lehigh used a mini 8-0 surge in the early going, behind a Karnik layup and threes from Leufroy and Tejada, to take a 15-9 lead.
After the Bison responded with seven straight points, neither team led by more than four until a deep Andree three with 7:59 on the clock to give Lehigh a 27-22 advantage.
Another Tejada trey gave Lehigh a 40-34 lead with 3:36 left in the first, but the Bison ended the half on a 9-1 run to take a 43-41 lead into the locker room.
Â
The first 5:08 of the second half saw three ties and eight lead changes. Trailing 56-55, Lehigh used a 7-0 surge to reopen a six-point lead following a Leufroy fastbreak layup and Jordan Cohen free throw, making the score 62-56 Mountain Hawks with 11:33 left in the second.
Â
After two Bruce Moore free throws with 10:47 remaining to pull his team within four, the margin remained four or less until the final minute in a back-and-forth battle. A Leufroy three-pointer with 4:29 on the clock gave Lehigh a 76-72 lead, but that's the last the Mountain Hawks would score for more than four minutes. Bucknell went on a 10-0 run, stopped by a Karnik offensive rebound and putback with 23 seconds remaining, helping set the stage for the dramatic ending.
Â
For the game, the Mountain Hawks shot 51.7 percent from the field (31-of-60), including 60.9 percent from three-point range (14-of-23). Bucknell finished at 49.3 percent (33-of-67) and 36.4 percent from distance (8-of-22). The Bison held a 41-29 edge in rebounds. Lehigh was also hurt by its free throw shooting, hitting a season-worst 53.8 percent from the line (7-of-13).
Â
"We knew this was going to be a good game; we've had some really good games with Bucknell," said Reed. "That's what you want; you want to be able to stand up to the championship moment. Unfortunately, we dropped one at home. It hurts, it's a telling sign that we need to continue to develop and grow. I've been talking to our team about our defense the whole way through and that's been a theme, particularly in January. We have to do a better job. If we don't do a better job, it will be hard to beat really good teams."
Â
The Mountain Hawks will hit the road on Wednesday to face Navy. Opening tipoff is set for 7 p.m. Lehigh returns home next Saturday, Jan. 26, to host Bucknell at 2 p.m. Tickets are available online by clicking here.
Â
Like Lehigh Men's Basketball on Facebook, follow on Twitter and Instagram for exclusive content, team updates and more.
Â
Â
Down by five after a Sotos free throw with 18 seconds remaining, senior Lance Tejada knocked down a three-pointer, then the Mountain Hawks forced a steal on the end line and Tejada found a cutting Pat Andree, who finished the layup with eight seconds remaining. Â
ÂExtremely tough loss today, but one thing continues to shine through. Our guys always play with tremendous heart and togetherness and it showed in scoring five points in about six seconds to pull even. @StablerArena was rocking. pic.twitter.com/GkwFQm6KUz
— Lehigh M. Basketball (@LehighMBB) January 19, 2019
However, Sotos came down the other and drove to his right before banking a tough shot home with just over one second on the clock.
Â
"They score right at the end, but it's any of those possessions throughout the course of the game [that hurt us]," said Lehigh head coach Brett Reed. "We gave up far too many points in the paint and we had miscommunication at times. Earlier in the second half, we scored then jogged back on defense and Kimbal Mackenzie, who's a great shooter, gets an open three right in front of their bench. Those mistakes and those little lapses, in whether it's judgement or focus, are the things that stand out the most."
Â
Senior Kyle Leufroy led Lehigh's offense with a career-high 26 points, eight rebounds, five assists and three steals. He was 6-of-9 from three-point range as the Mountain Hawks finished 14-of-23 on the afternoon, their third game this season over 60 percent. Tejada added 15 points, 12 coming in the first half, and seven assists. Sophomore James Karnik just missed his third straight double-double at home with 14 points and nine rebounds. Andree scored 14, including 3-of-5 shooting behind the arc.
Â
"We ended up showing good heart towards the end," said Reed. "We read the situation as far as being down and having to foul right away and not having any timeouts. Fortunately, we were able to come up with the steal and the score. Then Jimmy Sotos made a great play, but that's no different than what we were doing all day. Bucknell's commitment to push the ball from the end line to the elbow was evident all day and it really became a factor in putting us on our heels. It's almost fitting that the game would end that way because that's what they were looking to do the whole game."
Â
Lehigh used a mini 8-0 surge in the early going, behind a Karnik layup and threes from Leufroy and Tejada, to take a 15-9 lead.
ÂLance Tejada's first 3 of the game brought Lehigh even with Bucknell early in the first. pic.twitter.com/2lAte4bS7V
— Lehigh M. Basketball (@LehighMBB) January 19, 2019
ÂKyle Leufroy was HOT from 3, and this shows it. pic.twitter.com/2j1yYaGgZe
— Lehigh M. Basketball (@LehighMBB) January 19, 2019
After the Bison responded with seven straight points, neither team led by more than four until a deep Andree three with 7:59 on the clock to give Lehigh a 27-22 advantage.
Pat Andree goes DEEP with this 3-pointer. pic.twitter.com/dj6VHAJxYN
— Lehigh M. Basketball (@LehighMBB) January 19, 2019
Another Tejada trey gave Lehigh a 40-34 lead with 3:36 left in the first, but the Bison ended the half on a 9-1 run to take a 43-41 lead into the locker room.
Â
The first 5:08 of the second half saw three ties and eight lead changes. Trailing 56-55, Lehigh used a 7-0 surge to reopen a six-point lead following a Leufroy fastbreak layup and Jordan Cohen free throw, making the score 62-56 Mountain Hawks with 11:33 left in the second.
Â
After two Bruce Moore free throws with 10:47 remaining to pull his team within four, the margin remained four or less until the final minute in a back-and-forth battle. A Leufroy three-pointer with 4:29 on the clock gave Lehigh a 76-72 lead, but that's the last the Mountain Hawks would score for more than four minutes. Bucknell went on a 10-0 run, stopped by a Karnik offensive rebound and putback with 23 seconds remaining, helping set the stage for the dramatic ending.
Â
For the game, the Mountain Hawks shot 51.7 percent from the field (31-of-60), including 60.9 percent from three-point range (14-of-23). Bucknell finished at 49.3 percent (33-of-67) and 36.4 percent from distance (8-of-22). The Bison held a 41-29 edge in rebounds. Lehigh was also hurt by its free throw shooting, hitting a season-worst 53.8 percent from the line (7-of-13).
Â
"We knew this was going to be a good game; we've had some really good games with Bucknell," said Reed. "That's what you want; you want to be able to stand up to the championship moment. Unfortunately, we dropped one at home. It hurts, it's a telling sign that we need to continue to develop and grow. I've been talking to our team about our defense the whole way through and that's been a theme, particularly in January. We have to do a better job. If we don't do a better job, it will be hard to beat really good teams."
Â
The Mountain Hawks will hit the road on Wednesday to face Navy. Opening tipoff is set for 7 p.m. Lehigh returns home next Saturday, Jan. 26, to host Bucknell at 2 p.m. Tickets are available online by clicking here.
Â
Like Lehigh Men's Basketball on Facebook, follow on Twitter and Instagram for exclusive content, team updates and more.
Â
Team Stats
BUCKNELL
LEHIGH
FG%
.493
.517
3FG%
.364
.609
FT%
.688
.538
RB
41
29
TO
9
10
STL
7
5
Game Leaders
Pts
26
FGM
9
3FGM
6
FTM
2
Pts
15
FGM
5
3FGM
4
FTM
1
Pts
14
FGM
7
3FGM
0
FTM
0
Pts
14
FGM
5
3FGM
3
FTM
1
Players Mentioned
F
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's BasketballC
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's BasketballSeason Preview: Men's Basketball
Thursday, October 31
Lehigh Sports Central: Men's Basketball
Wednesday, October 30
Lehigh Sports Central: Men's Basketball
Wednesday, February 07
Men's Basketball vs SUNY Oneonta
Thursday, November 16
