Courtesy of LehighSports.com
BETHLEHEM, Pa. – Coming off its first Patriot League win Saturday, the Lehigh men’s basketball team hits the road for the first time in almost three weeks when the Mountain Hawks travel to Loyola on Wednesday. Opening tipoff in Baltimore is set for 7:30 p.m. Lehigh wrapped up its four-game homestand with an 81-73 win over Boston University.
The Mountain Hawks opened a 13-point first-half lead, but the Terriers came back to tie the score several times. However, Boston University never took a lead as Lehigh had an answer each time. After returning from injury against Army West Point and scoring a career-high 28 points, junior Tim Kempton helped spearhead the early charge against the Terriers as he scored 14 of the Mountain Hawks’ first 28 points to give his squad a 28-15 advantage with 8:44 on the first-half clock. Freshman Kyle Leufroy paced the offense towards the end of the half, scoring 16 points over the final 10:46 of the first half. Kempton finished the game with 22 points and 11 rebounds for his 23rd-career double-double while Leufroy scored a career-high 20 points and junior Austin Price scored 16.
Leading 63-62 with 4:40 remaining, Lehigh staged a 10-2 run which began with a three-pointer from sophomore Kahron Ross, included a three-point play by Price and ended with a Ross jumper to make the score 73-64 with 1:56 on the clock. Ross finished the game with nine points, all in the game’s final 4:40, along with seven assists with just one turnover. Senior Jesse Chuku recorded seven points and seven rebounds while classmate Devon Carter scored five big second-half points. The Mountain Hawks shot better than 50 percent from three-point range for a second straight game, finishing 10-of-17 (59 percent). Leufroy was a perfect 4-of-4 from long range while Price was 3-of-5. One game after knocking down just 10-of-20 from the free throw line vs. Army West Point, Lehigh converted 15-of-16 against the Terriers.
Since his return from injury, Kempton is averaging 25.0 points and 8.0 rebounds per game to up his season averages to 18.4 and 8.0, respectively. Price is now averaging 14.2 points per game while Ross stands at 10.2, Chuku 9.7 and Leufroy 9.1. Kempton is third in the Patriot League in scoring average while Price stands sixth. After strong three-point shooting to start league play, the Mountain Hawks are now at 37.5 percent for the season.
Saturday’s win improved Lehigh’s Patriot League record to 1-1 and home mark to 3-3. After a tough 0-7 start, the Mountain Hawks are 3-3 over their last six games, which includes two straight games eclipsing 80 points. Lehigh hits the road for two straight games, at Loyola Wednesday and American Saturday, before returning home on Monday, Jan. 11 for a nationally-televised CBS Sports Network showdown against Bucknell.
Loyola went through a tough nonleague season which featured a 1-10 record, but the Greyhounds have bounced back to win their first two Patriot League games. Loyola defeated American (75-67) at home then Lafayette on the road (81-78). Four Greyhounds are averaging double-figure points as Jarred Jones leads the way with 13.6 points per game (along with a team-leading 7.8 rebounds). Tyler Hubbard is next with a 13.0 scoring average while Andre Walker averages 12.5 and Eric Laster 11.0. Loyola has struggled from three-point range, shooting just 31.4 percent while allowing opponents to shoot 42.1 percent. The Greyhounds’ lone nonleague win came at UMBC. They did face a tough schedule, also playing Kansas, Northwestern and Stony Brook, among others.
Lehigh’s 69-63 win over Loyola last Feb. 7 gave the Mountain Hawks a 7-6 edge in the all-time series. The teams have split the season series in each of the last two seasons since Loyola joined the Patriot League for the 2013-14 campaign. Prior to meeting as league opponents, the teams last played on Nov. 26, 1988, an 86-72 Lehigh victory. The sides first met in 1912-13, a 41-19 Lehigh victory. Loyola’s first win was in 1915-16 by a 35-15 final.
Lehigh will remain on the road at American on Saturday at 2 p.m. The Mountain Hawks then return home next Monday to host Bucknell at 7:30 p.m. on CBS Sports Network.
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Date:January 6, 2016Opponent:Loyola GreyhoundsTip-off:7:30 PMArena/Capacity:Reitz Arena/2,100Location:Baltimore, Md.Lehigh’s Record:3-10, 1-1 Patriot League Loyola’s Record:3-10, 2-0 Patriot LeagueSeries:Lehigh leads, 7-6Radio:Live on ESPN Radio 1160, 1230 and 1320 AM and Lehighsports.com with Tom Fallon. Pregame coverage gets underway at 7:00 PMTelevision:NoneInternet Video:Patriot League NetworkBehind Enemy Lines:Loyola Official Website
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