Strong 2nd Half Propels Lehigh over M. Basketball

The Harvard men’s basketball team watched an 11-point lead at intermission evaporate and fell to Lehigh, 70-61, Saturday in Bethlehem, Pa.

“[It was] a total team defense collapse on our part,” junior guard Drew Housman said of the second half.

The Crimson (4-6) suffered on the glass against the Mountain Hawks (5-5), who snagged 13 offensive boards to the Crimson’s four and held the overall rebounding edge, 34-25. Lehigh forward Bryan White posted a game-high 10 rebounds.

Additionally, Lehigh enjoyed extra time at the charity stripe, taking 24 shots and sinking 22. Though Harvard only took nine, the Crimson was flawless from the line.

“We usually make more [free throws] than the other team takes,” sophomore forward Pat Magnarelli said. “By the end of the game, we were fouling them a lot just to get the ball back. That’s how the lead ballooned up at the end.”

Four of Harvard’s starters reached double digits in points, with junior forward Evan Harris leading the pack with 16 and a team-high six rebounds. Housman, Magnarelli, and sophomore guard Jeremy Lin each delivered 10 points.

Mountain Hawks guard Marquis Hall stole the show, racking up a game-high 17 points and 5 assists while going 7-for-7 from the free-throw line. Lehigh forward Zahir Carrington also put in 14 points to sink the Crimson.

“The first two possessions we trapped the ball, got some turnovers, and carried that through the half—we were fired up.” Magnarelli said, “We let them back in the game too easily.”

In the opening minutes, Harvard came out strong, claiming a 16-5 edge after making seven of 10 field goals and pounding out a 12-0 run.

The Crimson also benefited from lackluster Lehigh shooting. The Mountain Hawks shot just 28 percent from the field and connected on only one of seven shots taken from beyond the arc in the first frame.

“We need to work on maintaining our focus the entire game,” junior guard Andrew Pusar said. “Given the disparity between the first and second half, we just need to play with the intensity we did in the first half. If we carry that over, we can do some really special things.”

Lehigh had no trouble finding the bottom of the net in the second half. The Mountain Hawks found their way back into contention with an 18-6 run to take a 40-39 lead and erase Harvard’s once double-digit advantage.

“We gave up a [few] too many open looks from the three-point line,” Pusar said. “They were able to knock some down, and you could tell it got them going and got them excited. Slowly but surely, they crept up on us.”

Thanks to a three-pointer by Pusar, Harvard took the lead back at 45-43, and two buckets by Harris stretched it to 49-43. Then Lehigh scored the next seven points, including five from Hall, to regain the lead with 7:44 left to play. Sophomore guard Dan McGeary connected from downtown to chip away at the lead, but the home team did not let Harvard catch up for the rest of play.

In the final five minutes, the Mountain Hawks sunk eight free throws and extended their advantage to 11 points. Harris fouled out for the second time in as many games, and Harvard missed four shots from long range.

This win puts Lehigh at the .500 mark after 10 games for the first time since the 2003-04 season. Next, the Crimson will travel to take on the Long Island Blackbirds on Thursday in Brooklyn, N.Y., for its third road game in a row.

“We are only a third of the way through the season,” Housman said. “We’re all committed to pick up our game and get some road wins before the Ivy League starts. Once that comes, winning on the road is critical.”