Hawks head to courts across country

The Lehigh men’s basketball team’s 2024-25 schedule has signaled a season of changes.

The Mountain Hawks are set to compete against non-conference opponents like UCLA and Northwestern, taking the team into the national spotlight.

Coach Brett Reed said he’s confident about the upcoming season and thinks the team is ready for the challenge. 

“Our players are competitors,” Reed said. “They love to be able to test themselves against some of the best in the country, and (the schedule) will give them this opportunity.” 

The season tips off on Nov. 4 in Evanston against Northwestern, followed by a Nov. 6 matchup in Washington, D.C. against Georgetown. The team will then travel to New York City to take on Columbia on Nov. 12 before heading to Los Angeles to play UCLA just three days later.

This year’s schedule presents numerous challenges with several mid-week games and cross-country flights due to NCAA conference changes. 

Senior guard Ben Knostman said balancing academics with the demanding travel schedule seems challenging, but he’s confident in the team’s ability to make it work.

He said the team uses their travel time to be productive with school work, and if he and his teammates miss quizzes or assignments, they always end up getting them done in a timely manner.

“We always talk about getting ahead on our work and making sure our professors know when we’ll miss class,” Knostman said.

In addition to a rigorous flight schedule, the team is welcoming two new assistant coaches, Manny Adako and Brian Kennedy. 

The coaching staff is committed to the physical preparation of the team and the well-being of the players, and Kennedy said they recognize the challenges of being a student-athlete. 

“As a coach, you relish those situations where you have a group of players that you know want to work together to reach one common goal, and that are willing to pay the sacrifices to get there,” Kennedy said.

He said especially at a rigorous school like Lehigh, athletes must set aside enough time to complete their academic work in season.

The Mountain Hawks will face 11 teams before their Patriot League opener against Bucknell on Jan. 2, with 17 additional conference games to follow.

Senior guard Tyler Whitney-Sidney said every single game, the team must go out and compete, even if their opponent is more athletic or skilled than they are. 

“This schedule gets me really excited for Patriot League games,” Whitney-Sidney said.“It’s definitely going to set the tone.”

Reed said these out-of-conference games, though challenging, provide beneficial training and professional development for the team. 

“We really want to value their development for their sake to continue to grow but also for the sake of our team to figure out which combinations work best for us to have on-court success,” Reed said.

Reed said in order to find success with the jam-packed schedule the team must maintain trust amongst each other.