Sunday, February 21
Baltimore, Md.
6 p.m.
Lehigh University
4-8
76
at
72
Loyola
3-8
1
2
F
Lehigh
41
35
76
Loyola Maryland
33
39
72
Lehigh Bounces Back in Big Way to Down Loyola, 76-72
2/21/2021 10:01:00 PM | Men's Basketball
BALTIMORE – One day after a 28-point home loss to Loyola, the Lehigh men's basketball team travelled to Baltimore and picked up a hard-fought, gutsy win over the same Greyhounds, 76-72, on Sunday evening inside Reitz Arena. A balanced team effort saw sophomore Reed Fenton lead the offense with 19 points to tie a career high. Freshman Dominic Parolin was a huge spark off the bench, posting career highs in points (15) and rebounds (10) for his first-career double-double. With the win, the Mountain Hawks move back ahead of Loyola in the standings and into the eighth and final Patriot League Tournament position heading into the final weekend of the regular season.
"I was really proud of our guys, being able to bounce back the way they did from yesterday," said Lehigh head coach Brett Reed. "I think there was an emotional gut check. We came with great energy. We got a significant play from Reed Fenton right off the jump, but all our guys played hard and shared the ball. Dominic Parolin came in and gave us some excellent minutes as well to help us establish ourselves.
"Our guys played a very good brand of basketball and I like the teamwork I saw in the first half and the tremendous energy on defense."
Parolin's 15 points came on 7-of-11 shooting. Sophomore Evan Taylor just missed his fourth double-double in the last six games, tallying 15 points and nine boards. Senior Marques Wilson also just missed a double-double with nine points and nine rebounds. Freshman Ben Li finished a strong weekend with another double-figure scoring effort, finishing with 10 points.
A competitive first half saw the teams trade leads in the early going. Fenton had a pair of 3-pointers before the game was four minutes old to set the tone early. A 5-0 Loyola surge gave the Greyhounds a 24-19 lead midway through the first half, but the Mountain Hawks had an answer.
Taylor and Parolin took over in a 9-0 run, scoring five and four points, respectively. A Parolin fastbreak dunk gave Lehigh a 28-24 advantage with 6:29 on the first-half clock. The Mountain Hawks would retain the lead from that point forward, but it came against significant Loyola resistance. An Isaiah Hart layup got the Greyhounds within 36-33, but Lehigh scored the final five first-half points to open a 41-33 halftime advantage.
Less than a minute into the second half, a Li 3-pointer put the Mountain Hawks ahead double figures for the first time at 44-33. From there, Loyola continued to claw closer, but Lehigh always seemed to have an answer.
The Greyhounds got within four at 55-51 midway through the stanza and three at 58-55 with 7:52 on the clock, but Lehigh responded with four straight points (all Fenton free throws) and seven of the next eight as a Jake Betlow 3-pointer put the Mountain Hawks ahead by nine, 65-56, with 6:31 remaining.
Lehigh held a multiple-possession lead for much of the remaining minutes, but a Santi Aldama 3-point play pulled the Greyhounds within 71-69 with 29 seconds on the clock. The Mountain Hawks were able to hold on, making enough free throws and getting enough stops in the final seconds for the 76-72 win.
For the game, Lehigh shot 44.6 percent from the field (25-of-56), which includes 60 percent in the first half (18-of-30). Loyola finished at 45.9 percent (28-of-61). The Mountain Hawks were 26.3 percent from 3-point range (5-of-19) compared to 25.0 percent for the Greyhounds (4-of-16). Lehigh held a 39-37 edge on the glass.
"I like the fact that our kids tried to put their stamp on the game," said Reed. "They did it with teamwork. They played together and played hard. They did it with energy. They were flying all over the court, particularly in the first half and they weathered some storms, whether it's the storm they weathered from yesterday or even some of the defensive pressure that Loyola was able to put on us.
"At the end of the day, we were able to come out of here with a win and that's very impressive. It's a character win."
The Mountain Hawks will close out the regular season next weekend against Lafayette, traveling to Easton on Saturday at 4 p.m. before hosting the Leopards on Sunday at 6 p.m.
Like Lehigh Men's Basketball on Facebook, follow on Twitter and Instagram for exclusive content, team updates and more.
"I was really proud of our guys, being able to bounce back the way they did from yesterday," said Lehigh head coach Brett Reed. "I think there was an emotional gut check. We came with great energy. We got a significant play from Reed Fenton right off the jump, but all our guys played hard and shared the ball. Dominic Parolin came in and gave us some excellent minutes as well to help us establish ourselves.
Have a game, Dominic Parolin! He is doing it all. Up to 14 points and six boards so far after this and one.
— Lehigh M. Basketball (@LehighMBB) February 22, 2021
Watch on ESPN+ https://t.co/4xP1Cx06Aq pic.twitter.com/yJMASOsndH
"Our guys played a very good brand of basketball and I like the teamwork I saw in the first half and the tremendous energy on defense."
Parolin's 15 points came on 7-of-11 shooting. Sophomore Evan Taylor just missed his fourth double-double in the last six games, tallying 15 points and nine boards. Senior Marques Wilson also just missed a double-double with nine points and nine rebounds. Freshman Ben Li finished a strong weekend with another double-figure scoring effort, finishing with 10 points.
A competitive first half saw the teams trade leads in the early going. Fenton had a pair of 3-pointers before the game was four minutes old to set the tone early. A 5-0 Loyola surge gave the Greyhounds a 24-19 lead midway through the first half, but the Mountain Hawks had an answer.
.@reed_fenton feeling it early. 2-for-2 from deep 🔥🔥
— Lehigh M. Basketball (@LehighMBB) February 21, 2021
Watch on ESPN+ https://t.co/4xP1Cx06Aq pic.twitter.com/E0UcJRm67s
Taylor and Parolin took over in a 9-0 run, scoring five and four points, respectively. A Parolin fastbreak dunk gave Lehigh a 28-24 advantage with 6:29 on the first-half clock. The Mountain Hawks would retain the lead from that point forward, but it came against significant Loyola resistance. An Isaiah Hart layup got the Greyhounds within 36-33, but Lehigh scored the final five first-half points to open a 41-33 halftime advantage.
Less than a minute into the second half, a Li 3-pointer put the Mountain Hawks ahead double figures for the first time at 44-33. From there, Loyola continued to claw closer, but Lehigh always seemed to have an answer.
.@benli__ has heated up to start the second half with six early points. Lehigh 49, Loyola 38 at the under-16 media timeout.
— Lehigh M. Basketball (@LehighMBB) February 22, 2021
Watch on ESPN+ https://t.co/4xP1Cx06Aq pic.twitter.com/G2BflZNSNe
The Greyhounds got within four at 55-51 midway through the stanza and three at 58-55 with 7:52 on the clock, but Lehigh responded with four straight points (all Fenton free throws) and seven of the next eight as a Jake Betlow 3-pointer put the Mountain Hawks ahead by nine, 65-56, with 6:31 remaining.
"Hello Betlow." 👋 @jake_betlow
— Lehigh M. Basketball (@LehighMBB) February 22, 2021
Watch on ESPN+ https://t.co/4xP1Cx06Aq pic.twitter.com/Ye4lI3Zive
Lehigh held a multiple-possession lead for much of the remaining minutes, but a Santi Aldama 3-point play pulled the Greyhounds within 71-69 with 29 seconds on the clock. The Mountain Hawks were able to hold on, making enough free throws and getting enough stops in the final seconds for the 76-72 win.
For the game, Lehigh shot 44.6 percent from the field (25-of-56), which includes 60 percent in the first half (18-of-30). Loyola finished at 45.9 percent (28-of-61). The Mountain Hawks were 26.3 percent from 3-point range (5-of-19) compared to 25.0 percent for the Greyhounds (4-of-16). Lehigh held a 39-37 edge on the glass.
"I like the fact that our kids tried to put their stamp on the game," said Reed. "They did it with teamwork. They played together and played hard. They did it with energy. They were flying all over the court, particularly in the first half and they weathered some storms, whether it's the storm they weathered from yesterday or even some of the defensive pressure that Loyola was able to put on us.
"At the end of the day, we were able to come out of here with a win and that's very impressive. It's a character win."
The Mountain Hawks will close out the regular season next weekend against Lafayette, traveling to Easton on Saturday at 4 p.m. before hosting the Leopards on Sunday at 6 p.m.
Like Lehigh Men's Basketball on Facebook, follow on Twitter and Instagram for exclusive content, team updates and more.
Team Stats
LEHIGH
LOYOLA
FG%
.446
.459
3FG%
.263
.250
FT%
.636
.480
RB
39
37
TO
21
18
STL
15
12
Game Leaders
Pts
19
FGM
4
3FGM
3
FTM
8
Pts
15
FGM
5
3FGM
0
FTM
5
Pts
15
FGM
7
3FGM
0
FTM
1
Players Mentioned
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