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HAMILTON – Lehigh came out on top of a game of runs Wednesday night to hand the Colgate men's basketball team an 88-78 loss at Cotterell Court.
 
Colgate had trimmed a 12-point deficit down to two halfway through the second half, but the Mountain Hawks answered with an 11-0 run to thwart the Colgate momentum give Lehigh the separation it would need to secure its fifth-straight victory.
 
Sophomore Will Rayman led the Raiders with 18 points and nine rebounds. Senior Jordan Swopshire tallied 15 points, securing his 1,000th career point in the process. Senior Sean O'Brien chipped in 14 points and a season-best eight assists, while junior Dana Batt added 11 points.
 
The teams exchanged baskets in the opening minutes as the game was tied at 12, 15, 18 and 20 and the first-half clock wound under 10. The Mountain Hawks used a 7-0 streak to turn a 23-22 lead into a 30-22 edge at the 6:33 mark.
 
A three-pointer from first-year Jack Ferguson snapped the Lehigh streak at the 5:43 mark and started the Raiders off on their own 8-2 run. The streak allowed Colgate  to pull back within two at 32-30. The Mountain Hawks worked their lead back to five at 38-33 before Swopshire drained the three-pointer that put him over the 1,000 career point mark. Lehigh scored the final basket of the half, however, to take a 40-36 lead into the locker room.




The Mountain Hawks made their first four shots of the second half to open the term on a 13-5 streak and stretch the Lehigh lead to 53-41 with under 15 minutes to play.
 
An O'Brien three was then followed by seven-straight points from Rayman. Colgate's 10-0 streak pulled the Raiders back within two at 53-51 and forced a Lehigh timeout  with 11:55 on the clock.
 
The Mountain Hawks battled back with 11 unanswered points over the next four minutes to take their largest lead yet at 64-51 with 8:57 to play. The Raiders wouldn't get closer than seven the rest of the way as Lehigh held on for the 88-78 victory.
 
BOTTOM LINE

• Lehigh 88, Colgate 78

 
WON-LOST RECORDS

• The Raiders drop to 14-11 on the season and 9-6 in Patriot League play. Colgate and Navy are now tied for second place in the league standings at 9-6. The Raiders would win any tiebreaker over the Mids as Colgate swept the two regular-season contests.
• Lehigh improves to 13-13 overall and 8-7 in league action with its fifth-straight win

 
KEY RAIDER INFO

• Swopshire entered the game needing seven points to reach the 1,000-point mark. His five three-pointers allowed him to tally 15. Thirty-four of Swopshire's career points were scored during his freshman year at Bradley.
• Rayman narrowly missed a double-double with his strong effort. He finished 6-for-12 from the field.
• O'Brien's eight assists marked a season high for the senior and matched his career high in helpers.
• Batt tallied his eighth double-digit effort of the season. He added five rebounds.

 
FACTS & FIGURES

• Colgate finished the game shooting 41.3 percent (26-for-63) from the field, 32.6 percent (15-for-46) from three-point range and 91.7 percent (11-for-12) from the free throw line.
• Lehigh shot 56.4 percent (31-for-55) from the field, highlighted by a 65.4 percent (17-for-26) second-half mark. The Mountain Hawks were 52.9 percent (9-for-17) from three-point range and 85.0 percent (17-for-20) from the charity stripe.
• Lehigh won the battle of the boards, 36-28.
• The Mountain Hawks scored 34 points in the paint compared to Colgate's 18.
• Lehigh's Marques Wilson was 9-for-10 from the field en route to a game-high 28 points.

 
UP NEXT

• The Raiders hit the road for their final away game of the regular season when Colgate travels to Loyola Sunday.
• Tipoff is set for 2 p.m. from Baltimore, with free video available on the Patriot League Network.