Saturday, February 17
Bethlehem, Pa.
2:00 PM
Lehigh University
10-15,7-7Patriot
75
vs
70
Loyola University Maryland
6-21,4-10Patriot
1
2
F
Loyola Maryland
34
36
70
Lehigh
35
40
75
Photo by: Kendall Gavin
Mountain Hawks Hold Off Loyola Maryland 75-70 To Win Third Straight
2/17/2024 6:45:00 PM | Men's Basketball
BETHLEHEM, Pa. – Four Mountain Hawks reached double figures on Saturday afternoon at Stabler Arena in Lehigh's 75-70 win over the Loyola Maryland Greyhounds. The win marked Lehigh's third consecutive Patriot League victory as the Mountain Hawks continue to climb the Patriot League standings.
"I believe in these guys, I love them, and I want what's best for them," said head coach Dr. Brett Reed following the win. "They believe in each other, and because of that, I think it bolsters their belief in themselves."
The win moves Lehigh's (10-15, 7-7 PL) all-time record over Loyola (6-21, 4-10 PL) to 17-15, which now includes two wins over the Greyhounds this season. The Mountain Hawks went 4-7 across their first 11 league games, but Lehigh's three-game win streak has put them firmly in the race for a top seed in the upcoming Patriot League tournament.
The Greyhounds, who had won two of their last three outings, entered Saturday's contest severely undermanned. Loyola had nine players available while playing only six due to a series of injuries on their roster. Despite this, the Greyhounds gave Lehigh all they could handle.
Joshua Ingram picked up right where he left off following his 24-point performance on Monday against Bucknell, knocking down two triples in the first three minutes to put his team ahead 8-2. The Greyhounds responded, particularly with buckets from Golden Dike, Deon Perry and David Brown III that kept Loyola within a possession or two for a large portion of the half.
After cutting the Lehigh lead down to three on a Perry triple, the Greyhounds conducted a 15-6 run, with Perry scoring 11 during that stretch. Now trailing 27-24, Lehigh immediately responded with a Dominic Parolin poster dunk that tied the game after he was awarded a free throw for finishing through contact. Triples from Burke Chebuhar and Keith Higgins Jr. combined with another Parolin bucket down the stretch gave Lehigh a narrow 35-34 lead at halftime.
Dike got the scoring started for Loyola in the second half which was immediately followed by a Chebuhar basket on the other end. However, the Mountain Hawks wouldn't score for the next two minutes, which the Greyhounds took advantage of thanks to five made free throws from Perry. Lehigh answered with another scoring run, outpacing Loyola 17-5 over the next six minutes of gameplay to lead 54-46. The Greyhounds once again answered with a 9-2 run that put them within one point with under eight minutes remaining in regulation.
The two teams continued to trade buckets until a Cam Gillus triple put the Mountain Hawks up 68-66 with 2:40 left on the clock. Lehigh wouldn't lose the lead again, as a series of made free throws from Parolin and Whitney-Sidney extended Lehigh's lead to four. Perry connected on two from the line and a driving layup to reach a career-high of 33 points, but his efforts weren't enough to overcome the Mountain Hawks.
Whitney-Sidney led the way for Lehigh with 16 points off the bench. The junior knocked down 8-9 attempts at the free throw line and grabbed two steals in the win.
"[Tyler's] a kid who's going to come in and play hard, and that's what he did tonight," said Reed. "It shows how Tyler is maturing and growing. He wants to start… but instead of pouting, he's going to go out and be a great teammate."
The combination of Parolin and Chebuhar once again paid dividends for Lehigh as the pair combined for 29 points, scoring 15 and 14 respectively. Parolin has scored 10+ in five of his last six outings while Chebuhar has reached that same mark in each of the past three games. In addition, the pair matched each other's rebound total, as each hauled in eight boards.
"They are stabilizing us," said Reed on his frontcourt. "They're giving us opportunities to score inside sometimes when our jumpers are or aren't falling… [Dom and Burke] got some meaningful touches during critical possessions and were able to convert."
Once again reaching double-digits was Joshua Ingram, who tallied 10 points in the win. The Metuchen, N.J. native has now scored 10+ points seven times during his rookie campaign. The first-year also tied his career-high of three steals while also knocking down two three-pointers.
The Mountain Hawks will embark on a two-game road stand next week, starting with a trip to West Point to face Army on Wednesday, February 21. Tip-off is scheduled for 6 p.m. at Christl Arena.
Like Lehigh men's basketball on Facebook, follow on X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram for continued updates on the Mountain Hawks.
"I believe in these guys, I love them, and I want what's best for them," said head coach Dr. Brett Reed following the win. "They believe in each other, and because of that, I think it bolsters their belief in themselves."
The win moves Lehigh's (10-15, 7-7 PL) all-time record over Loyola (6-21, 4-10 PL) to 17-15, which now includes two wins over the Greyhounds this season. The Mountain Hawks went 4-7 across their first 11 league games, but Lehigh's three-game win streak has put them firmly in the race for a top seed in the upcoming Patriot League tournament.
The Greyhounds, who had won two of their last three outings, entered Saturday's contest severely undermanned. Loyola had nine players available while playing only six due to a series of injuries on their roster. Despite this, the Greyhounds gave Lehigh all they could handle.
Joshua Ingram picked up right where he left off following his 24-point performance on Monday against Bucknell, knocking down two triples in the first three minutes to put his team ahead 8-2. The Greyhounds responded, particularly with buckets from Golden Dike, Deon Perry and David Brown III that kept Loyola within a possession or two for a large portion of the half.
After cutting the Lehigh lead down to three on a Perry triple, the Greyhounds conducted a 15-6 run, with Perry scoring 11 during that stretch. Now trailing 27-24, Lehigh immediately responded with a Dominic Parolin poster dunk that tied the game after he was awarded a free throw for finishing through contact. Triples from Burke Chebuhar and Keith Higgins Jr. combined with another Parolin bucket down the stretch gave Lehigh a narrow 35-34 lead at halftime.
DOMINIC PAROLIN WITH NO REGARD FOR HUMAN LIFE
— Lehigh M. Basketball (@LehighMBB) February 17, 2024
📺 https://t.co/8hwPyloXm0
@ESPN @PatriotLeagueTV #GoLehigh #PLTop3 #SCTop10 pic.twitter.com/tk3InMIHQr
Dike got the scoring started for Loyola in the second half which was immediately followed by a Chebuhar basket on the other end. However, the Mountain Hawks wouldn't score for the next two minutes, which the Greyhounds took advantage of thanks to five made free throws from Perry. Lehigh answered with another scoring run, outpacing Loyola 17-5 over the next six minutes of gameplay to lead 54-46. The Greyhounds once again answered with a 9-2 run that put them within one point with under eight minutes remaining in regulation.
The two teams continued to trade buckets until a Cam Gillus triple put the Mountain Hawks up 68-66 with 2:40 left on the clock. Lehigh wouldn't lose the lead again, as a series of made free throws from Parolin and Whitney-Sidney extended Lehigh's lead to four. Perry connected on two from the line and a driving layup to reach a career-high of 33 points, but his efforts weren't enough to overcome the Mountain Hawks.
Whitney-Sidney led the way for Lehigh with 16 points off the bench. The junior knocked down 8-9 attempts at the free throw line and grabbed two steals in the win.
"[Tyler's] a kid who's going to come in and play hard, and that's what he did tonight," said Reed. "It shows how Tyler is maturing and growing. He wants to start… but instead of pouting, he's going to go out and be a great teammate."
Hear from @twhitneysidney after today's 75-70 victory over Loyola, our third straight win! 👏#GoLehigh pic.twitter.com/4zkkHVqHDb
— Lehigh M. Basketball (@LehighMBB) February 17, 2024
The combination of Parolin and Chebuhar once again paid dividends for Lehigh as the pair combined for 29 points, scoring 15 and 14 respectively. Parolin has scored 10+ in five of his last six outings while Chebuhar has reached that same mark in each of the past three games. In addition, the pair matched each other's rebound total, as each hauled in eight boards.
"They are stabilizing us," said Reed on his frontcourt. "They're giving us opportunities to score inside sometimes when our jumpers are or aren't falling… [Dom and Burke] got some meaningful touches during critical possessions and were able to convert."
Once again reaching double-digits was Joshua Ingram, who tallied 10 points in the win. The Metuchen, N.J. native has now scored 10+ points seven times during his rookie campaign. The first-year also tied his career-high of three steals while also knocking down two three-pointers.
The Mountain Hawks will embark on a two-game road stand next week, starting with a trip to West Point to face Army on Wednesday, February 21. Tip-off is scheduled for 6 p.m. at Christl Arena.
Like Lehigh men's basketball on Facebook, follow on X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram for continued updates on the Mountain Hawks.
Team Stats
Loyola
Lehigh
FG%
.464
.481
3FG%
.350
.381
FT%
.733
.773
RB
32
31
TO
14
12
STL
7
8
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
16
FGM
4
3FGM
0
FTM
8
Pts
15
FGM
5
3FGM
0
FTM
5
Pts
14
FGM
5
3FGM
2
FTM
2
Pts
10
FGM
3
3FGM
2
FTM
2
Players Mentioned
F
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