The last time Lehigh basketball made the NCAA Tournament, CJ McCollum lifted them to a first-round upset over Duke. This year, they’ll star in the First Four in Dayton.
It’s hard to believe Lehigh’s historic upset over Duke happened 14 years ago, but after all, CJ McCollum is a true NBA veteran. There may not be a McCollum-esque player on this Mountain Hawks team, but Nasir Whitlock is definitely a bucket-getter and has his team in position to at least move out of Dayton and into the main bracket.
How they got there:
People forget that 2-seed Lehigh only beat 10-seed Holy Cross in the quarterfinals of the Patriot League Tournament.
But from there, they kept getting more convincing wins. First, a seven-point win over 3-seed Colgate, and then a championship game victory over 4-seed Boston U by 14 points.
And throughout the Patriot League Tournament, big man Hank Alvey helped carry Lehigh, averaging 19.3 points and 5.7 rebounds, including 30 points against Colgate. But it was Whitlock’s 29 PPG and 10 assists against Colgate that helped seal the deal. That one-two punch will be tough for Prairie View A&M to handle.
General information:
Team: Lehigh
Location: Bethlehem, PA
Record: 18-16 (11-7)
Head Coach: Brett Reed (19th season overall, all at Lehigh)
What to know about Lehigh basketball:
When talking about the Mountain Hawks, you need to start with head coach Brett Reed, who has been in town for nearly two decades. This is Reed’s third time guiding Lehigh basketball to the big dance, doing so in 2010 and, of course, in 2012.
But there is a reason Lehigh’s in the First Four. They average more points allowed than points scored, and despite going 11-7 in conference, they only went 4-9 in non-conference play. To their credit, they kept it close with UC Santa Barbara, only losing by two, and only lost by a dozen to Rutgers. Against Houston, Lehigh lost by 18 but outscored the Cougars in the second half, 34-31.
In Patriot League play, things started to go more in the right direction, and Lehigh enters the NCAA Tournament on a six-game winning streak.
Whitlock and Alvey are clearly the two offensive leaders of the team, with Alvey leading Lehigh in rebounding. While rebounding isn’t a big part of Lehigh’s game, Alvey, Edouard Benoit, and Joshua Ingram all average at least five per game.
One of the best parts of Lehigh’s game is three-point shooting. The Mountain Hawks make 35.9% of their tries from deep, with Whitlock (44.5%) serving as one of the top snipers in college basketball.
Unfortunately, in most other metrics, Lehigh can’t boast about much, which should make for a quick out in the tournament.
NCAA Tournament prediction for Lehigh basketball: Round of 64 Exit
Seed: 16
The best part about Lehigh’s game with Prairie View A&M is Nasir Whitlock going against Dontae Horne – two 20+ PPG scorers who look to take over Dayton. Alvey will also have his hands full with 6-foot-7 Cory Wells, who leads the Panthers with 7.1 rebounds per contest.
However, the biggest point of emphasis for Prairie View A&M is getting to the line and making free throws. Lehigh doesn’t foul much, so if they stay true to that, they’ll move on to the round of 64 against Florida.