Joe Jones, the coach of Boston University, expected another tough game when the Lehigh Mountain Hawks came to Case gym for the Patriot League semifinal on Sunday.
Jones got the tough game he expected, but this time BU didn't win. Lehigh, seeded 6th, recovered from being 18 points behind in the first half and scored 14 points to BU's 9 in extra time to win 84-79.
BU won both regular season games, but they were very close. They beat the Mountain Hawks 72-71 at home on Feb. 3 and 64-62 in extra time at Lehigh on Feb. 28.
Lehigh (14-17, 10-9) has made it to the Patriot League final and will play against Colgate (24-9, 17-2) on Wednesday at Cotterell Court in Hamilton, N.Y.
Jones said, “Nobody deserved to lose that game. We've had some great battles and I knew they wouldn't give up.
“The mental aspect of the game changes when the opponents are coming after you. I wasn't surprised that they got back in the game; they are a good team.”
Lehigh had a 40% field goal rate with 12 successful 3-pointers, 36 rebounds, and 10 assists. Freshman guard Cam Gillus scored 30 points, making six 3-pointers, while junior guard Tyler Whitney-Sidney netted 21 with 10 from the free-throw line. BU had a 45.6% field goal rate with 16 successful 3-pointers, 37 rebounds, and 18 assists. Senior guard Anthony Morales led BU with a career high 27 points.
During the break, Lehigh regrouped and started the second half with an 8-3 run to make it 49-36 during the first media timeout. The Terriers made poor shot choices while Lehigh continued to force turnovers to extend the lead. Lehigh's junior guard Keith Higgins made two free throws to reduce the lead to 49-42 with 13:52 left to play.
Gillus scored two consecutive 3-pointers to reduce BU’s lead to 52-48 with 10:22 remaining. Forward Bube Momah scored and Higgins made a jump shot, giving Lehigh its first lead, 55-54, with 7:22 to go.
Gillus scored two 3-pointers, and Higgins added another at the end of the shot clock, giving Lehigh a 64-59 lead with 4:17 left. Nico Nobili made a dunk, and Morales followed with a corner 3-pointer, putting BU ahead 69-68 with 1:06 to play. BU’s Miles Brewster had a chance to secure the win, but missed his second free throw with 3.9 seconds left, and the half ended tied at 70.
Jones said, “We had opportunities to win but we couldn’t make it happen. We had a chance to finish it, but couldn’t, and Gillus was exceptional.”
Lehigh took a 76-72 lead at the beginning of the extra time, but BU tied the game with a drive by Nobili with 2:23 to go. Junior guard Tyler Whitney-Sidney sealed the game with a floater, a left-handed hook on the baseline, and four free throws.
“He is a top player in the league,” said Jones. “He is as good as any guard in this league, and he has high major athleticism, quickness, and skill level. He's a challenging guy to defend.”
Kyrone Alexander made the first shot for the Terriers, a 3-pointer from the right corner, but then missed four consecutive shots from behind the arc. Morales joined the game at 17:10 and made two consecutive 3-pointers and banked one off the backboard, giving the Terriers a 15-5 lead at the first media timeout.
Freshman guard Michael McNair came into the game and scored two three-pointers to increase BU's lead to 21-10 during the second media timeout. The Terriers' defense stayed strong while the three-point shots kept going in, giving BU a 29-15 lead going into the third media timeout. BU made 11 three-pointers from six different shooters to take a 46-28 lead at the half.
