BETHLEHEM, Pa. – Colgate held Lehigh to a season-low 51 points and five Raiders scored in double figures in a balanced 81-51 rout of the Mountain Hawks on Wednesday at Stabler Arena.
Jordan Burns paced the Raiders in scoring with 16 points to go with eight assists.
Tucker Richardson added 13,
Will Rayman and
Keegan Records both had 11, and
Jack Ferguson 10.
Rayman posted his fifth double-double in the last six games with 11 points and 10 rebounds, a fitting performance to go with a milestone only one Raider has accomplished before him. The senior forward joins Adonal Foyle '99 as the only two in program history to ever reach 1,700 career points and 800 career rebounds.
Colgate (18-6, 9-2 Patriot) used a 12-2 run late in the first half to go into the locker room with a 40-30 advantage, and the Raiders kept their wheels churning in the second half. Lehigh scored 21 total points in the final stanza and Colgate forced 16 turnovers.
Both teams got off to a hot start, with the Mountain Hawks holding a slight edge at the first media break. Jeameril Wilson was 2-of-2 from behind the arc and the home team started 6-of-8 from the field to hold a 15-14 advantage four minutes into the game.
Lehigh (5-18, 2-9 Patriot) from there missed on its next six field goal attempts, while Records keyed a 12-2 run with six points in the paint to push Colgate in front. Ferguson netted his first triple to give the Raiders a 26-17 advantage at the nine-minute mark.
The Mountain Hawks answered back with the next six points, four in a row from the free throw line, with a layup from Nic Lynch trimming Colgate's lead to 26-23 three minutes later.
Ferguson converted on a three-point play to snap the drought, before Cummings weaved through everybody for a layup to push the lead to 35-25. That would be the margin at the half 40-30 after Burns drained a trey.
Colgate's lead remained at 10 (46-36) four minutes into the second half, before the Raiders flipped a switch both offensively and defensively. Cummings buried back-to-back triples in an overwhelming 22-2 run over an eight-minute stretch.
Lehigh's only bucket from 16:35 to 8:40 was a jumper from Jakob Alamudun. Colgate countered with 14 unanswered points, and a Richardson corner trey capped the run to give the Raiders a 30-point lead, 68-38.
The Raiders' lead never fell below 28 points the rest of the way.
Milan Williams sank a pair of free throws in the final minute and Colgate cruised to the 81-51 victory.
BOTTOM LINE
Colgate 81, Lehigh 51
QUOTES
Head Coach Matt Langel
On the game:
"Coming off the Holy Cross game, our guys got back to playing with the edge necessary to win convincingly on the road. We were very committed on the defense end tonight. When our defense is connected, it often leads to good scoring chances for us in transition. Obviously, another double-double for Will is fitting on the night he eclipsed the 1700/800 club, joining a few elite players and as the only true forward to do so."
On the scoring outburst in the second half:
"As the season has shown, we have a lot of guys capable of making defenses pay. Tonight we made good reads, good decisions, moved the ball and got high quality shots.
Jordan Burns had some nice passes for open layups and
Keegan Records did a great job getting to the rim for high percentage shots."
On holding Lehigh to season-low 51 points (21 in the second half):
"I really liked our defensive intensity. We guarded the ball well, disrupted their rhythm and closed down in passing lanes to get some deflections. Our hands were pretty active forcing some loose balls.
Tucker Richardson did a great job on Jordan Cohen – their leading scorer who finished with four points."
GAME NOTES
• Rayman is the fifth in Patriot League history to reach 1,700 points and 800 rebounds.
• Of that list, he is the only player to have not earned a Patriot League Player of the Year.
• Rayman leads the team with eight double-doubles on the season.
• Burns reached double figures for the 12th straight game, dating back to Dec. 22.
• His eight assists were his most since racking up 10 against Columbia.
• Records' 11 points were his most since posting a career-high 13 against Columbia.
• The freshman posted a career-high three blocks in the win.
• Colgate matched its season high in steals with 10.
UP NEXT
Colgate returns home Saturday to close out its regular season series with Navy. Tip-off is 2 p.m. at Cotterell Court, with the Patriot League Network carrying the livestream.
