Army West Point Athletics
Army West Point
10-4, 1-2PL
Lehigh
7-7, 1-2PL
| Team | 1 | 2 | F |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lehigh | 28 | 43 | 71 |
| Army | 28 | 32 | 60 |
Lehigh Deals Men's Basketball League Defeat
January 07, 2015 | Men's Basketball
WEST POINT, N.Y. - Lehigh used an 11-0 run midway through the second half to take the lead for good in a 71-60 victory over Army on Wednesday night at Christl Arena. Kyle Wilson scored 17 points to lead Army in the loss.
The Mountain Hawks improved to 7-7 on the season while Army dropped to 10-4. Both teams sit at 1-2 in conference play with the result.
Tim Kempton posted a double-double of 19 points and 10 rebounds and was one of four Lehigh players to reach double figures in the scoring column. Kahron Ross put in 13 and dished out eight assists, Justin Goldsborough added 13 and Corey Schaefer scored 10 and grabbed seven rebounds.
The Mountain Hawks limited Army to a 33.9 percent shooting performance (21-of-62), including a 9-for-31 effort from beyond the arc. Lehigh shot the ball at a 45.6 percent clip (26-of-57), got to the foul line 23 times, with 16 makes and outscored Army in the paint 38-20.
"Lehigh did a good job being more consistent with their defensive execution and energy, especially in the second half," head coach Zach Spiker said. "They beat us to 50-50 balls in critical junctures. It is certainly a disappointing loss for us."
Goldsborough scored the game's first basket for Lehigh before Army quickly put in eight points with a three by Larry Toomey, a dunk by Kevin Ferguson and Wilson's corner three.
Army maintained its lead and was up 13-11 following a Kempton free throw, before stretching the advantage to seven points with a pair of transition baskets from Dylan Cox on a drive and Plomb's wing three-pointer. Lehigh was unable to get the ensuing inbounds pass into play and called timeout midway through the opening half.
Luke Morrison's three-pointer put Army up 23-16, but Lehigh responded with a 9-0 run surrounding the under four-minute timeout. Stefan Cvrkalj's corner triple capped the stretch and briefly put Lehigh in front (24-23) prior to Cox's three-point answer on the opposite end.
Despite leading most of the first half and forcing Lehigh into 10 turnovers, Army went into the locker room tied at 28. The Black Knights gave the ball away nine times and shot 36.7 percent from the floor (11-for-30).
Army was up 32-30 early in the second half prior to Lehigh's 10-0 run that propelled the visitors to their largest lead of the night. Eight of Lehigh's 10 points came in the paint as Kempton and Price each put in four points. Jumpers from Morrison and Wilson ended the run and Army trailed by four (40-36) four minutes into the period.
Down 48-42 after Ross' reverse layup, Army cut the deficit to three points when Mo Williams got into the paint and dished to Plomb for a wing three-pointer. Several empty possessions later, Wilson drained a pair at the line and Army was within a point (48-47) with less than 12 minutes to go.
The Black Knights held defensively and benefitted from a pair of offensive rebounds before Wilson connected on a pullup three and regained the lead for Army at 50-48 and capped an 11-2 run for the Black Knights.
Consecutive old-fashioned three-point plays from Kempton put Lehigh in front by four, then Goldsborough converted inside to push the Mountain Hawks ahead by six as the visitors took the lead for good. Goldsborough added a pair at the stripe, then Kempton made one-of-two and Lehigh had a run of 11 straight to go up 59-50 with 8:17 on the clock.
The Lehigh lead was 10 points when Kempton was called for an illegal screen and picked up his fourth foul. Army scored on a broken play with a basket by Ferguson, but Ross got a layup to fall and the lead was back to double digits a minute later.
With five minutes to play, Milton Washington's left-handed drive resulted in three-points the hard way and Army was down 65-56. Washington came up with a steal on the press, but Plomb rimmed out on a corner three and Army was unable to close the gap over the final minutes.
Army is back in action on Saturday when it hosts Navy at Noon. The contest can be seen on CBS Sports Network or heard on the Army Sports Network.
Game Notes: Wilson's 17-point effort increased his career total to 1,232 points and he passed Mark Binstein (1,223) to move into 18th all-time in Academy history ... Toomey matched his career-high with nine rebounds.
