Saturday, February 12
Bethlehem, Pa.
12 p.m.
Lehigh University
9-17,7-7Patriot
69
vs
73
Lafayette
8-15,5-7Patriot
1
2
F
Lafayette
36
37
73
Lehigh
29
40
69
Photo by: Hannahally Photography
Second-Half Surge Falls Short vs. Lafayette, 73-69
2/12/2022 4:09:00 PM | Men's Basketball
BETHLEHEM, Pa. – After the Lehigh men's basketball team went down by as many as 16 early in the second half, the Mountain Hawks immediately responded with a 22-6 run – due in large part to their strong bench play – tying the score, but ultimately coming up short on Saturday, 73-69, in The Rivalry presented by Lehigh Valley Orthopedic Institute. Lehigh went on to open a 61-60 lead with 5:34 remaining, and the lead changing five times over the last five minutes. Lehigh falls to 7-7 in Patriot League play while Lafayette improves to 5-7.
Turnovers proved critical as the Mountain Hawks had 15 to the Leopards' nine, leading to a 29-9 Lafayette edge in points off turnovers.
"We were leaving our feet to pass and they were picking off our passes," said Lehigh head coach Brett Reed. "In the first half, it was 18-4 as far as point differential off turnovers, and it continued in the second half. When we took care of the ball, when we were aggressive, when we played really hard, we ended up making a great run. I'm really pleased in our bench and the way in which they were able to come in and contribute. They gave us a spark, primarily because they played really hard and for a long stretch, took care of the ball."
The Leopards featured three players scoring double digits. Neal Quinn contributed 22, Tyrone Perry added 19 and Leo O'Boyle scored 17.
Senior Jeameril WIlson started the scoring with a steal followed by a driving layup. A 3-pointer by junior Evan Taylor and a Lynch hook shot extended the lead, 7-4, in the early going.
A dunk from sophomore Dominic Parolin extended the Mountain Hawk's lead to 13-9, but the Leopards fought back and were able to take their first lead of 15-13 with 11:08 left in the first half.
The next few minutes featured the Mountain Hawks and Leopards exchanging the lead. Jeameril Wilson drained a 3-pointer to put Lehigh ahead 24-22 with 7:30 left in the first half. Just over a minute later, first year Keith Higgins buried a 3-pointer to put Lehigh up 27-26 with 6:23 on the clock.
A layup by sophomore JT Tan cut Lafayette's lead to 30-29 with 2:13 left in the half. A mini 6-0 Leopards' run in the last two minutes got their lead to 36-29 after 20 minutes of play. Lynch led the Mountain Hawks with eight first-half points.
Betlow responded just 40 seconds later, kickstarting the 22-6 run. Betlow had nine points in that span, including a pair of 3-pointers, while junior Jakob Alamudun added two 3-pointers as well. A Marques Wilson trey with 9:33 remaining pulled the Mountain Hawks even, 55-55.
A Ben Knotsman pass set up a layup from Tan as Lehigh took a 61-60 lead with 5:34 on the clock, its first of the half. Over the ensuing minutes, Betlow twice hit go-ahead 3-pointers – with 4:10 remaining (to put Lehigh ahead 64-63) and with 2:44 on the clock (to give the Mountain Hawks a 67-65 lead).
A long 3-pointer from Kyle Jenkins, followed by a driving layup from Perry, gave Lafayette a 70-67 lead with 1:11 left in the game. Jeameril Wilson converted a layup to make the score 70-69 with 16 seconds remaining, but the Leopards made their last three free throws to take a 73-69 lead, which proved to be the final.
For the game, Lehigh shot 53.2 percent from the floor (25-of-47) and 57.9 percent from 3-point range (11-of-19). That included a stretch of five straight made threes in the second half. Lafayette finished at 56 percent from the floor (28-of-50) and were held to 33.3 percent from 3-point range (6-of-18). The Mountain Hawks made 80 percent of their free throws (8-of-10) while the Leopards made 55 percent (11-of-20). Rebounds were tied at 25.
"JT's energy was great," said Reed. "We had guys in foul trouble in the first half. He's got the body and the strength to try to match up a little bit against Quinn. It was a tough matchup for him, but he gave us good life, good energy and the energy that he brought in the first half was then replicated by other guys."
Lehigh recognized during halftime its 2012 Patriot League Championship team that beat Duke in the NCAA Tournament.
Like Lehigh Men's Basketball on Facebook, follow on Twitter and Instagram for exclusive content, team updates and more.
Turnovers proved critical as the Mountain Hawks had 15 to the Leopards' nine, leading to a 29-9 Lafayette edge in points off turnovers.
"We were leaving our feet to pass and they were picking off our passes," said Lehigh head coach Brett Reed. "In the first half, it was 18-4 as far as point differential off turnovers, and it continued in the second half. When we took care of the ball, when we were aggressive, when we played really hard, we ended up making a great run. I'm really pleased in our bench and the way in which they were able to come in and contribute. They gave us a spark, primarily because they played really hard and for a long stretch, took care of the ball."
Three players scored double digits for Lehigh. Junior Jake Betlow and fifth year Marques Wilson led the scoring for the Mountain Hawks with 15 points each. Betlow tied his career high, all 15 coming in the second half and went 4-of-6 from the floor, including 80 percent (4-of-5) from beyond the 3-point arc. Wilson went 6-of-9 from the floor and 2-of-3 from beyond the arc. Senior Nic Lynch added 12 points, shooting 80 percent (4-of-5) from the floor and 100 percent (4-of-4) from the free-throw line.🎥 Our bench brought us back, but we fell a little short this afternoon. Another opportunity comes in just 48 hours as we host Bucknell Monday night on @CBSSportsNet pic.twitter.com/QOryx1ToQD
— Lehigh M. Basketball (@LehighMBB) February 12, 2022
The Leopards featured three players scoring double digits. Neal Quinn contributed 22, Tyrone Perry added 19 and Leo O'Boyle scored 17.
Senior Jeameril WIlson started the scoring with a steal followed by a driving layup. A 3-pointer by junior Evan Taylor and a Lynch hook shot extended the lead, 7-4, in the early going.
A dunk from sophomore Dominic Parolin extended the Mountain Hawk's lead to 13-9, but the Leopards fought back and were able to take their first lead of 15-13 with 11:08 left in the first half.
The next few minutes featured the Mountain Hawks and Leopards exchanging the lead. Jeameril Wilson drained a 3-pointer to put Lehigh ahead 24-22 with 7:30 left in the first half. Just over a minute later, first year Keith Higgins buried a 3-pointer to put Lehigh up 27-26 with 6:23 on the clock.
A layup by sophomore JT Tan cut Lafayette's lead to 30-29 with 2:13 left in the half. A mini 6-0 Leopards' run in the last two minutes got their lead to 36-29 after 20 minutes of play. Lynch led the Mountain Hawks with eight first-half points.
The Leopards extended their run to 14-0 with an 8-0 start to the second half, taking a 44-29 lead. Lafayette's lead reached as much as 16 as an O'Boyle trey gave the Leopards a 49-33 lead with 16:26 on the clock.JT Tan had some strong contributions late in the first half, including this tough finish.
— Lehigh M. Basketball (@LehighMBB) February 12, 2022
Watch the second half on ESPN+ https://t.co/0rzkKwJAGO pic.twitter.com/KXN4ZZ9QuN
Betlow responded just 40 seconds later, kickstarting the 22-6 run. Betlow had nine points in that span, including a pair of 3-pointers, while junior Jakob Alamudun added two 3-pointers as well. A Marques Wilson trey with 9:33 remaining pulled the Mountain Hawks even, 55-55.
"Jake and Marques brought in great energy when we were flat," said Reed. "I loved how hard they played.".@jake_betlow from Philadelphia!!!
— Lehigh M. Basketball (@LehighMBB) February 12, 2022
Watch on ESPN+ https://t.co/0rzkKwJAGO pic.twitter.com/ODKm8KlkCw
A Ben Knotsman pass set up a layup from Tan as Lehigh took a 61-60 lead with 5:34 on the clock, its first of the half. Over the ensuing minutes, Betlow twice hit go-ahead 3-pointers – with 4:10 remaining (to put Lehigh ahead 64-63) and with 2:44 on the clock (to give the Mountain Hawks a 67-65 lead).
A long 3-pointer from Kyle Jenkins, followed by a driving layup from Perry, gave Lafayette a 70-67 lead with 1:11 left in the game. Jeameril Wilson converted a layup to make the score 70-69 with 16 seconds remaining, but the Leopards made their last three free throws to take a 73-69 lead, which proved to be the final.
For the game, Lehigh shot 53.2 percent from the floor (25-of-47) and 57.9 percent from 3-point range (11-of-19). That included a stretch of five straight made threes in the second half. Lafayette finished at 56 percent from the floor (28-of-50) and were held to 33.3 percent from 3-point range (6-of-18). The Mountain Hawks made 80 percent of their free throws (8-of-10) while the Leopards made 55 percent (11-of-20). Rebounds were tied at 25.
"JT's energy was great," said Reed. "We had guys in foul trouble in the first half. He's got the body and the strength to try to match up a little bit against Quinn. It was a tough matchup for him, but he gave us good life, good energy and the energy that he brought in the first half was then replicated by other guys."
Lehigh recognized during halftime its 2012 Patriot League Championship team that beat Duke in the NCAA Tournament.
It was great to have our 2012 @PatriotLeague Championship team that beat Duke in the NCAA Tournament back for today's game.
— Lehigh M. Basketball (@LehighMBB) February 12, 2022
Can't believe it's been 10 years! pic.twitter.com/zcZnCe6imN
The Mountain Hawks will return to action in just over 48 hours, hosting Bucknell on Monday. Opening tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. on CBS Sports Network. Monday's game is presented by JFR Salvage.Excited to have our 2012 @PatriotLeague champions back, who made history and beat Duke in the NCAA Tournament! pic.twitter.com/iijLKygnDs
— Lehigh M. Basketball (@LehighMBB) February 12, 2022
Like Lehigh Men's Basketball on Facebook, follow on Twitter and Instagram for exclusive content, team updates and more.
Team Stats
Laf
Lehigh
FG%
.560
.532
3FG%
.333
.579
FT%
.550
.800
RB
25
25
TO
9
15
STL
12
7
Game Leaders
Pts
15
FGM
4
3FGM
4
FTM
3
Pts
15
FGM
6
3FGM
2
FTM
1
Pts
6
FGM
2
3FGM
2
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
F
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's Basketball
F/C
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's Basketball
F
/ Men's BasketballG
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