Bucknell University
15-3, 6-0
Lehigh
12-9, 5-1
Bucknell Holds Off Lehigh 59-54 in Battle of Patriot League Unbeatens
1/25/2006 7:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Jan. 25, 2006
BETHLEHEM, Pa. - Kevin Bettencourt scored 16 points, including three big 3-pointers in the second half, to help Bucknell to a come-from-behind 59-54 victory over Lehigh in a battle of Patriot League unbeatens Wednesday night at Stabler Arena. Both teams came in with 5-0 conference marks, but thanks to yet another superb defensive showing, the Bison took over sole possession of first place.
The Bison, now 15-3 for only the second time in school history, have won six straight games and are 6-0 in Patriot League play for the third time ever. Lehigh (12-9, 5-1) saw its seven-game winning streak come to an end and fell to Bucknell at home for the first time since 2000.
Joe Knight (21 points) and Jose Olivero (19) combined for 40 of Lehigh's 54 points.
Abe Badmus had 10 points and six rebounds and Donald Brown came off the bench to produce eight points and 10 rebounds for the Bison.
Chris McNaughton was held to seven points, but his jumper with 15:45 left in the game made him the 31st 1,000-point scorer in Bucknell history.
Bucknell led by just a point at 41-40 at the six-minute mark, but Bettencourt and Badmus hit clutch 3-pointers to spark a 9-1 run that gave the Bison a 50-41 lead. Bettencourt's trey with 5:05 left made it 45-40, which marked Bucknell's first two-possession lead of the night.
Perhaps the biggest sequence of the night began with the Bison leading 48-41 after Badmus' 3-pointer. Brown rebounded a missed 3-pointer by Kyle Neptune at the other end with 2:40 remaining, and Bucknell milked the shot clock down to the final second. McNaughton missed a jumper as the shot clock expired, but he grabbed his own rebound. The Bison again used the entire clock, and this time Charles Lee rebounded his own miss and got fouled. He made both free throws to cap a possession that lasted almost a minute and a half.
After Knight hit a pair of free throws to make it 50-43, Badmus made 1 of 2 free throws, then tracked down his own miss, got fouled again and made two more charity tosses for a 53-43 lead with 57 seconds left. The offensive rebound was one of eight for the Bison in the final six minutes, which allowed them to run extra time off the clock and pick up a handful of key second-chance points.
Bucknell made 6 of 7 free throws in one stretch in the final minute to help compensate for two Olivero 3-pointers. Lehigh got as close as four points after Knight canned a 25-footer with 11 seconds left, but McNaughton iced it with a free throw.
Knight scored with 8:23 left in the game to bring Lehigh within 39-38, but that would be his final field goal until the bomb in the waning seconds.
Despite shooting only 34.6 percent (9-26) in the first half, the Bison trailed by only three at the break, 26-23. Bucknell scored the first five points of the second half, the last three coming on a Bettencourt 20-footer. After Lehigh went back ahead 31-28, Bettencourt hit another 3-pointer from the top of the key, and the Bison never trailed again.
The game was tied at 33 when Donald Brown finished a 3-point play inside, and it was tied once more at 36 until John Griffin broke the deadlock with a left-wing 3-pointer with 9:37 to play.
The Mountain Hawks led by seven twice in the first half, the first time at 16-9 after back-to-back 3-pointers from Mitch Gilfillan and Kyle Neptune. Brown and Darren Mastropaolo scored for the Bison to make it 16-13, but Knight tallied on back-to-back possessions to put Lehigh up 20-13.
Griffin's 3-pointer sparked a 7-0 run for the Bison, who tied it at 20 on Brown's free throws with 1:38 left in the half. Knight and Lee traded 3-pointers before Olivero drove the lane for a 3-point play with three seconds left to make it 26-23.
Knight (9), Olivero (8) and Gilfillan (6) combined for 23 of Lehigh's 26 first-half points.
Bucknell shot only 34.6 percent for the game but had another outstanding night defensively. Bucknell came into the game allowing only 43.8 points per game in league play, and they held the Mountain Hawks to 39.6 percent shooting while forcing 22 turnovers.
Lehigh, which scored 11 desperation points in the final 47 seconds, actually finished with highest scoring total against Bucknell in league play this season.
Bucknell, now 7-2 on the road this season, last won at Stabler Arena in 2000.
Bucknell returns to action on Saturday when Navy visits Sojka Pavilion for a 7 p.m. tip. The Bison defeated the Midshipmen 74-52 on Jan. 10 in Annapolis, Md.
