Monday, November 6
Bethlehem, Pa.
7:30 PM
Lehigh University
0-1,0-0Patriot
78
vs
84
Cornell University
1-0,0-0Ivy League
1
2
F
Cornell
39
45
84
Lehigh
44
34
78
Photo by: Clark Boinis
Lehigh Battles Cornell To 84-78 Loss In Season Opener
11/6/2023 11:25:00 PM | Men's Basketball
BETHLEHEM, Pa. – After Lehigh women's basketball picked up an opening night victory over East Stroudsburg, Lehigh men's basketball tipped off their season against Cornell in the second part of Monday's doubleheader. The Mountain Hawks competed wire-to-wire against the Big Red but ultimately fell 84-78 in the season opener.
"It was a high-tempo game where players had to make a lot of decisions, between Cornell's defensive pressure and trapping and their offensive style," said head coach Dr. Brett Reed. "It forced us to be very adaptable, and for a good portion of the night we did a pretty good job with that."
The two teams faced one another last season, resulting in a 96-64 victory for Cornell in Ithaca. This year's game played out quite differently, as neither team gained higher than a seven-point lead for the entirety of the game.
Lehigh opened up their season on a strong note, as the Mountain Hawks led 44-39 at half. Lehigh shot an efficient 52.9% from the field and outrebounded the Big Red in the first half 22-15. Junior Tyler Whitney-Sidney led all scorers after the first 20 minutes, putting up 16 points on 6-9 shooting in the first half.
Whitney-Sidney picked up right where he left off the begin the second frame, slamming it home off of a fast-break pass from Keith Higgins Jr. for the first points of the half. Lehigh's offense continued to click into the second half, as two Jalin Sinclair free-throws gave Lehigh it's largest lead at 58-51.
Lehigh's presence in the frontcourt helped them tremendously, winning both the rebound battle 40-34 and outscoring Cornell in the paint 36-30. Senior Dominic Parolin posted 16 points and eight rebounds on the night while sophomore Bube Momah grabbed 10 boards in his first career start.
"Last year we were extrodinarily young [in the frontcourt] and there were a lot of players that needed to learn college basketball," said Reed. "Dom's more confident being a senior… Bube's stepped forward from where he was a first-year, and it's nice to get those contributions from other players such as Burke Chebuhar as well."
Cornell, who ranked in the top ten in the nation in points, assists, and three-pointers last season, used their fast-paced style and prowess from beyond the arc to their advantage throughout the game. The Big Red shot 35.7% from three in the second half compared to Lehigh's 8.3%, which proved to be a deciding factor for them down the stretch.
Whitney-Sidney led all Lehigh scorers with 23 total points on the night while Sinclair added 13 points on an efficient 50% from the field and dished out a team-high five assists. Higgins Jr. recorded a team-best five steals on the night, helping Lehigh outscore Cornell 24-12 on points from turnovers.
Lehigh also saw contributions from two of its first-year players, as Nasir Whitlock and Joshua Ingram played a combined 26 minutes. Whitlock added eight points and knocked down two triples while Ingram scored four points and hauled in three rebounds.
"Our first-years made some strong contributions tonight, it was a night where we knew we needed to go a bit deeper into our bench," said Reed. "They now should be more acclimated to college basketball and some of the nerves hopefully are out, but each of them in their own right made some really positive plays."
The Mountain Hawks will be on the road this upcoming weekend following tonight's home opener, traveling to State College to take on Penn State on Friday followed by a trip down south to face #19 North Carolina on Sunday. The game against Penn State tips off at 7:30 p.m. while Sunday's contest in Chapel Hill is slated to begin at 2 p.m.
"We've got to continue to build on what we experienced and what was positive for us today," said Reed. "We've got to continue to do a good job with consistent defense, and hopefully do so with a little less fouling, a little bit better positioning, and then hopefully keep our opponents off the free throw line."
Like Lehigh men's basketball on Facebook, follow on X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram for continued updates on the Mountain Hawks.
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"It was a high-tempo game where players had to make a lot of decisions, between Cornell's defensive pressure and trapping and their offensive style," said head coach Dr. Brett Reed. "It forced us to be very adaptable, and for a good portion of the night we did a pretty good job with that."
The two teams faced one another last season, resulting in a 96-64 victory for Cornell in Ithaca. This year's game played out quite differently, as neither team gained higher than a seven-point lead for the entirety of the game.
Lehigh opened up their season on a strong note, as the Mountain Hawks led 44-39 at half. Lehigh shot an efficient 52.9% from the field and outrebounded the Big Red in the first half 22-15. Junior Tyler Whitney-Sidney led all scorers after the first 20 minutes, putting up 16 points on 6-9 shooting in the first half.
Whitney-Sidney picked up right where he left off the begin the second frame, slamming it home off of a fast-break pass from Keith Higgins Jr. for the first points of the half. Lehigh's offense continued to click into the second half, as two Jalin Sinclair free-throws gave Lehigh it's largest lead at 58-51.
Lehigh's presence in the frontcourt helped them tremendously, winning both the rebound battle 40-34 and outscoring Cornell in the paint 36-30. Senior Dominic Parolin posted 16 points and eight rebounds on the night while sophomore Bube Momah grabbed 10 boards in his first career start.
"Last year we were extrodinarily young [in the frontcourt] and there were a lot of players that needed to learn college basketball," said Reed. "Dom's more confident being a senior… Bube's stepped forward from where he was a first-year, and it's nice to get those contributions from other players such as Burke Chebuhar as well."
Cornell, who ranked in the top ten in the nation in points, assists, and three-pointers last season, used their fast-paced style and prowess from beyond the arc to their advantage throughout the game. The Big Red shot 35.7% from three in the second half compared to Lehigh's 8.3%, which proved to be a deciding factor for them down the stretch.
Whitney-Sidney led all Lehigh scorers with 23 total points on the night while Sinclair added 13 points on an efficient 50% from the field and dished out a team-high five assists. Higgins Jr. recorded a team-best five steals on the night, helping Lehigh outscore Cornell 24-12 on points from turnovers.
Lehigh also saw contributions from two of its first-year players, as Nasir Whitlock and Joshua Ingram played a combined 26 minutes. Whitlock added eight points and knocked down two triples while Ingram scored four points and hauled in three rebounds.
"Our first-years made some strong contributions tonight, it was a night where we knew we needed to go a bit deeper into our bench," said Reed. "They now should be more acclimated to college basketball and some of the nerves hopefully are out, but each of them in their own right made some really positive plays."
The Mountain Hawks will be on the road this upcoming weekend following tonight's home opener, traveling to State College to take on Penn State on Friday followed by a trip down south to face #19 North Carolina on Sunday. The game against Penn State tips off at 7:30 p.m. while Sunday's contest in Chapel Hill is slated to begin at 2 p.m.
"We've got to continue to build on what we experienced and what was positive for us today," said Reed. "We've got to continue to do a good job with consistent defense, and hopefully do so with a little less fouling, a little bit better positioning, and then hopefully keep our opponents off the free throw line."
Like Lehigh men's basketball on Facebook, follow on X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram for continued updates on the Mountain Hawks.
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Team Stats
CU
Lehigh
FG%
.456
.453
3FG%
.367
.241
FT%
.677
.813
RB
34
40
TO
15
17
STL
7
11
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
23
FGM
8
3FGM
2
FTM
5
Pts
16
FGM
7
3FGM
1
FTM
1
Pts
13
FGM
5
3FGM
1
FTM
2
Pts
8
FGM
3
3FGM
2
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
F
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's Basketball
F
/ Men's BasketballF/C
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's BasketballG
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