BETHLEHEM, Pa. – Lehigh University scored 12 of the game's last 14 points to beat a Loyola University Maryland men's basketball team that was missing two starters, 78-71, on Sunday afternoon in a Patriot League game at the Stabler Center.
Golden Dike had his first collegiate double-double with 10 points and a game-high 12 rebounds for Loyola (9-6 overall, 1-1 Patriot League) as seven Greyhounds scored seven or more points.
Andrew Kostecka scored drove the right side of the lane and scored with 2:59 on the clock, giving Loyola a 69-66 lead, but it was the last field goal the Greyhounds would record in the game.
Jeameril Wilson's three 29 seconds later tied the game for the Mountain Hawks, and Lehigh (4-10, 1-1) took the lead at 1:50 when James Karnik scored in the paint. Loyola then had two shots on its next possession, but each were off the mark before Marques Wilson drew a foul and hit a pair of free throws for Lehigh.
A three went off line for the Greyhounds with just over a minute to play, but they played solid defense for the entire shot clock before Reed Fenton hit a three as the shot-clock expired to give the Mountain Hawks a 75-69 lead with 35 ticks on the clock.
Loyola got as close as five with 16 seconds remaining on two
Isaiah Hart free throws, but itwould not draw closer.
Andrew Kostecka led the Greyhounds with 15 points, while
Brent Holcombe added 12 and Hart matched Dike's 10.
Fenton had a game-high 19 points for Lehigh, while Karnik added 18 and Marques Wilson scored 16.
The Mountain Hawks made seven of their first eight shots, plus a pair of free throws to lead 14-4 after four minutes, 35 seconds, but Loyola used a 27-6 run over the next 11-plus minutes for a 31-20 lead on a Kostecka three at 3:57.
Lehigh, however, came back to draw even at halftime, 36-36.
Loyola went up by eight four times in the second half and took a nine-point advantage, 57-48, on two Dike free throws with 10:39 left in regulation. They later took the advantage back to nine, 64-55, on a Holcombe basket and free throw with 7:24 on the clock.
The Greyhounds return to the court on Wednesday, January 8, when they head to Hamilton, New York, for a 7 p.m. game at Colgate University.
