City of Basketball Love

Jeff Griffith (@Jeff_Griffith21)
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WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind.--Despite staying close with the sixteenth-ranked Purdue Boilermakers (6-0) for the entire first half, the Lehigh Mountain Hawks (0-6) dropped their sixth straight to start the season, 77-55.

At First…
Lehigh hung with the Boilermakers for the entire first half, despite purdue opening up a 7-0 lead off the bat. The Mountain Hawks never led in the first half, but never trailed by single digits until the final basket of the half made it 36-26, Purdue.

Turning Point…
The beginning of the second half was all Purdue, and by the thirteen-minute mark they had already ripped off an 8-2 run that inflated their lead to sixteen. The lead never dipped below ten again, effectively putting it out of reach for Lehigh.

Shining Stars…
Tim Kempton had another solid night for Lehigh, dropping seventeen points while grabbing nine rebounds. Sophomore guard Kahron Ross was Lehigh’s only other double-digit scorer, with thirteen points on the night.

As for Purdue, sophomore center Isaac Haas paced all scorers with twenty-four points. Forwards Caleb Swanigan and Vince Edwards each earned double-digit rebound tallies, and combined for sixteen points.

Noteworthy Numbers…
Three-point shooting was a dismal aspect for both teams, with neither shooting above 25-percent from long distance on the game. Swanigan, who only had seven points on the night, was the only player in the game with multiple threes.

Purdue also out-rebounded the Mountain Hawks by a comfortable margin of 50-38, a pattern that continues to be a problem for Lehigh.  

Up Next…
Lehigh (0-6) @ St. Francis (12/2, 7:00 p.m.)
No. 16 Purdue (6-0) @ Pittsburgh (12/1, 9:00 p.m.)