Lehigh University Athletics
Saturday, November 9
North Andover, Mass.
1 p.m.
Lehigh University
72
at
68
Merrimack
Photo by: Josh Liddick
Buhr scores 1,000th point, Mountain Hawks top Merrimack in OT win
11/9/2019 6:27:00 PM | Women's Basketball
NORTH ANDOVER, Mass. —After taking a five point lead into the locker room at halftime, the Lehigh women's basketball team used late free throws in the fourth quarter to take a two-point lead before giving up a field goal with 35 seconds left, forcing an overtime period at the end of regulation. The Mountain Hawks got off to a quick start in OT, holding on for the 72-68 victory over Merrimack Saturday afternoon at Hammel Court.
The day was highlighted by senior guard Camryn Buhr, who scored a team-high 19 points, but finally reached the 1,000 point mark for her career with the two free throws late in the game after drawing a crucial foul. She becomes the 20th player in program history to reach the 1,000-point plateau and just the eighth player to become a member of the 1,000 point, 500 rebound club.
The Mountain Hawks went into halftime with a five point lead, but weren't satisfied after Merrimack shot the ball well and played the necessary defense to keep the game close. The Warriors made 12 of their 26 baskets in the first half and were led all day by Denia Davis-Stewart who was coming off an impressive triple-double performance over UMass earlier in the week. She, along with her teammates were responsible for drilling five 3-pointers in the first half alone.
After shooting 33.3 percent from the field in the first quarter, the Mountain Hawks improved in the second by shooting 53.3 percent with 15 made field goals in 36 attempts.
Two minutes into the start of the third quarter, Mary Clougherty converted on a 3-pointer to put the Mountain Hawks up 42-34. It was three of Clougherty's career-high 16 points for the game.
Merrimack cut it back close again, trailing 44-42 heading into the media timeout. Down 49-48 for the last 1:55 of the third quarter, Hannah Hedstrom nailed a two-point shot in the paint at the buzzer to propel Lehigh ahead, 50-49.
Lehigh had a four-point cushion with 4:47 remaining, but the Warriors kept it close and made a 3-pointer with 2:31 remaining to tie the game up at 61.
Buhr's free throws with 55 seconds left gave Lehigh a two point lead, but Merrimack converted on a shot with 35 seconds left to tie the game up at 63.
With four seconds remaining, Cameryn Benz missed a good look which would have been the game-winning shot, but Merrimack ended up turning the ball over on a bad pass with two seconds left. Clair Steele missed a shot at the buzzer that would have sent the Mountain Hawks home winners at the end of regulation.
Lehigh owned the overtime period, kicking it off with a 3-pointer from Clougherty and a jumper outside the paint from Buhr to put the Mountain Hawks up five with 3:45 to play. With 1:20 left and a two-point lead, Buhr hit a clutch jumper to give Lehigh a four-point lead, now up 70-66. Buhr's free throws in the late stages of the game put Lehigh up four points, but Merrimack's turnover problems continued and the Mountain Hawks held on for the 73-68 overtime win on the road.
With the victory, Lehigh improves to 2-0 on the season for the second consecutive year.
Buhr's 19 points led the team, adding eight rebounds, two assists, a steal and a block. She also drew four fouls and shot 50 percent (7-of-14) from the field. Clougherty added a career-best 16 points off the bench in just over 31 minutes, adding four rebounds and four assists. Benz was the third Lehigh player to reach double-figures in scoring on the afternoon with 11 points and seven rebounds. Clair Steele had seven points to go along with her seven rebounds, three assists and two steals. She also went 2-for-5 from long range.
"Cam (Buhr) is just so consistent with her presence in our program on the offensive and defensive end," said Troyan. "It's neat for a player like her to get 1,000 points because she does so many good things on the defensive end for us, but she's a model of consistency in our program and sets the tone for everything we do honestly, on both ends of the floor."
Lehigh shot 36 percent (27-for-75) from the field and 32 percent (8-for-25) from 3-point range. Although they got the win in the end, Merrimack still shot 40.7 percent (24-for-59) from the field and 34.5 percent (10-for-29) from beyond-the-arc. The Mountain Hawks led the Warriors in points in paint (32-20), bench points (31-2) and points from turnovers (15-5) while only turning the ball over nine times, forcing 16 Merrimack turnovers.
"The senior class came up really big for us down the stretch and in overtime," said Troyan. "I thought Cam (Benz) had some big plays, Cam (Buhr) had some big plays and that's what you want seniors to do in a game like this.
"Merrimack was deceptive, they're a good team. They were a great 3-point shooting team and have a great player inside (Denia Davis-Stewart) that is a shot-blocking presence and can shoot the ball, play up the dribble and I think she could be the best player in the NEC this year. Coming up here was a tough place to play, it's good win coming out of here, especially in overtime. It was a Patriot League-type game for us and it was a good overtime test for us."
The Mountain Hawks make their home debut at Stabler Arena on Wednesday morning at 11 a.m. vs. George Washington for Education Day. You can buy tickets here or call 610-7LU-GAME. The game will be broadcast live on Service Electric 2 Sports, Patriot League Network and through internet audio with Matt Markus on the call.
Like Lehigh Women's Basketball on Facebook, follow on Twitter and Instagram for exclusive content, team updates and more.
Gallery: (11/9/2019) Lehigh WBB at Merrimack 11/9/19
The day was highlighted by senior guard Camryn Buhr, who scored a team-high 19 points, but finally reached the 1,000 point mark for her career with the two free throws late in the game after drawing a crucial foul. She becomes the 20th player in program history to reach the 1,000-point plateau and just the eighth player to become a member of the 1,000 point, 500 rebound club.
The Mountain Hawks went into halftime with a five point lead, but weren't satisfied after Merrimack shot the ball well and played the necessary defense to keep the game close. The Warriors made 12 of their 26 baskets in the first half and were led all day by Denia Davis-Stewart who was coming off an impressive triple-double performance over UMass earlier in the week. She, along with her teammates were responsible for drilling five 3-pointers in the first half alone.
After shooting 33.3 percent from the field in the first quarter, the Mountain Hawks improved in the second by shooting 53.3 percent with 15 made field goals in 36 attempts.
Two minutes into the start of the third quarter, Mary Clougherty converted on a 3-pointer to put the Mountain Hawks up 42-34. It was three of Clougherty's career-high 16 points for the game.
She can't be cooled off! Mary Clougherty picks up right where she left off and drills her third 3-pointer of the game. #GoLehigh pic.twitter.com/9PTh8Emy1z
— Lehigh Women's Basketball (@LehighWBB) November 9, 2019
Merrimack cut it back close again, trailing 44-42 heading into the media timeout. Down 49-48 for the last 1:55 of the third quarter, Hannah Hedstrom nailed a two-point shot in the paint at the buzzer to propel Lehigh ahead, 50-49.
Hannah Hedstrom JUST beats the buzzer, giving Lehigh a 50-49 lead into the fourth quarter. #GoLehigh pic.twitter.com/8QRESE006g
— Lehigh Women's Basketball (@LehighWBB) November 9, 2019
Lehigh had a four-point cushion with 4:47 remaining, but the Warriors kept it close and made a 3-pointer with 2:31 remaining to tie the game up at 61.
Buhr's free throws with 55 seconds left gave Lehigh a two point lead, but Merrimack converted on a shot with 35 seconds left to tie the game up at 63.
With four seconds remaining, Cameryn Benz missed a good look which would have been the game-winning shot, but Merrimack ended up turning the ball over on a bad pass with two seconds left. Clair Steele missed a shot at the buzzer that would have sent the Mountain Hawks home winners at the end of regulation.
Lehigh owned the overtime period, kicking it off with a 3-pointer from Clougherty and a jumper outside the paint from Buhr to put the Mountain Hawks up five with 3:45 to play. With 1:20 left and a two-point lead, Buhr hit a clutch jumper to give Lehigh a four-point lead, now up 70-66. Buhr's free throws in the late stages of the game put Lehigh up four points, but Merrimack's turnover problems continued and the Mountain Hawks held on for the 73-68 overtime win on the road.
With just over a minute left in OT, Camryn Buhr comes up in the clutch to drain this 2-point shot, as Lehigh takes a four-point lead. #GoLehigh pic.twitter.com/Ora26lkVU1
— Lehigh Women's Basketball (@LehighWBB) November 9, 2019
With the victory, Lehigh improves to 2-0 on the season for the second consecutive year.
Buhr's 19 points led the team, adding eight rebounds, two assists, a steal and a block. She also drew four fouls and shot 50 percent (7-of-14) from the field. Clougherty added a career-best 16 points off the bench in just over 31 minutes, adding four rebounds and four assists. Benz was the third Lehigh player to reach double-figures in scoring on the afternoon with 11 points and seven rebounds. Clair Steele had seven points to go along with her seven rebounds, three assists and two steals. She also went 2-for-5 from long range.
"Cam (Buhr) is just so consistent with her presence in our program on the offensive and defensive end," said Troyan. "It's neat for a player like her to get 1,000 points because she does so many good things on the defensive end for us, but she's a model of consistency in our program and sets the tone for everything we do honestly, on both ends of the floor."
Lehigh shot 36 percent (27-for-75) from the field and 32 percent (8-for-25) from 3-point range. Although they got the win in the end, Merrimack still shot 40.7 percent (24-for-59) from the field and 34.5 percent (10-for-29) from beyond-the-arc. The Mountain Hawks led the Warriors in points in paint (32-20), bench points (31-2) and points from turnovers (15-5) while only turning the ball over nine times, forcing 16 Merrimack turnovers.
"The senior class came up really big for us down the stretch and in overtime," said Troyan. "I thought Cam (Benz) had some big plays, Cam (Buhr) had some big plays and that's what you want seniors to do in a game like this.
"Merrimack was deceptive, they're a good team. They were a great 3-point shooting team and have a great player inside (Denia Davis-Stewart) that is a shot-blocking presence and can shoot the ball, play up the dribble and I think she could be the best player in the NEC this year. Coming up here was a tough place to play, it's good win coming out of here, especially in overtime. It was a Patriot League-type game for us and it was a good overtime test for us."
The Mountain Hawks make their home debut at Stabler Arena on Wednesday morning at 11 a.m. vs. George Washington for Education Day. You can buy tickets here or call 610-7LU-GAME. The game will be broadcast live on Service Electric 2 Sports, Patriot League Network and through internet audio with Matt Markus on the call.
Like Lehigh Women's Basketball on Facebook, follow on Twitter and Instagram for exclusive content, team updates and more.
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