Lehigh men’s basketball defeats Lafayette in double overtime

Lehigh defeated Lafayette, 94-90, Saturday at Stabler Arena in a double-overtime comeback victory where the Leopards led by as many as 21 points.

This game marked the return of preseason All-Patriot League junior guard Keith Higgins, who suffered a strained Achilles in Lehigh’s Jan. 6 win over Loyola (Md.). Lehigh coach Brett Reed made it clear that Higgins would see limited minutes as he looked to ease the junior back into play. 

“It was a little in the air,” Higgins said. “We were going to see how it was going. I think I had a 20 minute restriction, but it wasn’t a hard cap.”

Higgins finished the game with 15 points in 25 minutes. His first points came from a four-point play with 10:12 left in the second.

Lehigh (8-15, 5-7 Patriot) was led in scoring by senior forward Dominic Parolin, who had a career high 33 points with five 3-pointers and nine rebounds, while first-year guard Mark Butler led Lafayette (10-15, 9-3 Patriot) with 20.

Lafayette junior guard Devin Hines pushes Lehigh junior guard Keith Higgins in a fight for the ball on Saturday, Feb. 10, 2024, at Stabler Arena. This is the 244 rivalry game between Lehigh and Lafayette, Lehigh won 94-90. (Amanda Rowan/B&W Staff)

Senior forward Burke Chebuhar also shined for the Mountain Hawks with 28 points, 16 of which came from the free throw line.

Lafayette led for the vast majority of the contest, spending 41:21 in control to Lehigh’s 5:17. 

The first half was characterized by a lack of involvement on the offensive end, with only four players getting on the board in the first half. Lehigh shot a dismal 8-24 from the field in the first half.

Conversely, the 3-point-heavy Lafayette sank 6 of their 11 first half three-point attempts.

Lafayette would go on two ten-point runs in the first as Lehigh struggled to keep up en route to a 41-27 deficit

“I think we didn’t come out with a lot of energy,” first-year guard Cam Gillus said. “It wasn’t really things they were doing, it was kind of mistakes on our part.” 

In all, Lehigh got to the line 33 times, which Parolin said was part of the game plan.

“We realized we were putting the bigs into foul trouble,” Parolin said. “We were really punishing them. We just keep shooting, keep going at them,” Parolin said. 

Coach Brett Reed pulls aside senior starter and forward Burke Chebuhar to talk during a game against Lafayette on Saturday, Feb. 10, 2024, at Stabler Arena. Chebuhar scored 6 total points in the first half, Lehigh won 94-90 in double overtime. (Amanda Rowan/B&W Staff)

Lehigh started the second half hot, with a Tyler Whitney-Sidney steal leading to a contact layup over Lafayette junior 7-footer Justin Vander Baan. An assist from Whitney-Sidney on the next possession resulted in a Dominic Parolin 3. 

Whitney-Sidney was holding three fingers up before the ball hit the nylon.

Lafayette led 47-41 with 15:22 remaining, and the Lehigh student section grew livelier as the Mountain Hawks closed the gap.

“We haven’t had this many fans at Stabler in a while, and we start a lot of young guys, so (we were) just getting acclimated to the game and feeling the pace,” Higgins said.

Lehigh capitalized off Lafayette mistakes in the second half, with 19 points off turnovers and seven steals.

A Chebuhar baseline jumper with two seconds left tied the game at 64 and sent it to overtime. 

Between both overtime periods, the lead changed hands seven times as both teams were unable to gain an edge. 

With 34 seconds on the clock, Higgins shook his defender at the 3-point line and created enough space to launch and sink a triple that gave the Mountain Hawks an 89-86 advantage. Chebuhar added to that after getting fouled while pulling down a defensive rebound. 

Three Chebuhar free throws iced the Lehigh comeback.

“A game like this is meaningful,” Reed said. “This is what college basketball is about. You got kids out there trying to figure it out, sometimes falling and failing, but then picking themselves right back up, and then trying as hard as they can to do the next right thing.”

Lehigh faces off against Bucknell on Feb. 12 in Lewisburg.

Lehigh men’s basketball guard Ben Knostman picks up teammate Keith Higgins Jr. after Higgins Jr. hit a three pointer and got fouled in a rivalry game Saturday, Feb. 10, 2024, at Stabler Arena. Lehigh won 94-90 in double overtime. (Luke Kaiser/B&W Staff)

Lehigh men’s basketball huddles at the start of their game against Lafayette on Saturday, Feb. 10, 2024, at Stabler Arena. The game went into overtime with a tie of 64-64 at the end of the second half, Lehigh won 94-90 in double overtime. (Amanda Rowan/B&W Staff)

Junior Keith Higgins gets up with the help of his teammates after a fall in the first half in a game on Saturday, Feb. 10, 2024, at Stabler Arena. Lafayette led the game at the first half with a score of 41-27, Lehigh won 94-90 in double overtime. (Amanda Rowan/B&W Staff)

Lehigh’s bench celebrates in a rivalry game against Lafayette Saturday, Feb. 10, 2024, at Stabler Arena. Lehigh won 94-90 in double overtime. (Luke Kaiser/B&W Staff)

Lehigh men’s basketball guard Cam Gillus squares up with Lafayette forward Kyle Jenkins in a rivalry game, Saturday, Feb. 10, 2024, at Stabler Arena. Lehigh won 94-90 in double overtime. (Luke Kaiser/B&W Staff)

Lehigh men’s basketball center Dominic Parolin squares up against Lafayette forward Chris Rubayo during a rivalry contest Saturday, Feb. 10, 2024, at Stabler Arena. Lehigh won 94-90. (Luke Kaiser/B&W Staff)

Lehigh men’s basketball coach Brett Reed on the sideline at a rivalry game against Lafayette Saturday, Feb. 10, 2024, at Stabler Arena. Lehigh won 94-90. (Luke Kaiser/B&W Staff)

Lehigh men’s basketball center Dominic Parolin goes up for a layup against Lafayette forward Chris Rubayo in a rivalry match Saturday, Feb. 10, 2024, at Stabler Arena. Lehigh won 94-90 in double overtime. (Luke Kaiser/B&W Staff)