BETHLEHEM, Pa. – Colgate erased a double-digit deficit for the second consecutive game but could not quite close this one out as Lehigh used a late 10-0 run to beat the Raiders 85-81 Tuesday night in the Patriot League opener at Stabler Arena.
 
Keegan Records' hook shot with 13:09 left gave Colgate its first lead 56-55, and then Sam Thomson scored four quick points off the bench to give the Raiders their largest lead 67-62 with 7:06 left. 

Colgate (4-10, 0-2 PL) followed that with uncharacteristic turnovers on four straight possessions and Lehigh responded with a 10-0 run to retake the lead for good. 
 
Tucker Richardson swished two late 3-pointers to cut the deficit to one possession twice in the final minute but Lehigh took care of the ball and its free throws to seal the 85-81 win.

Lehigh (4-10, 2-0 PL) outscored the Raiders 16-0 in points off turnovers and held Colgate to a season-low six 3-pointers.

Richardson paced the Raiders in scoring for the third straight game with 20 points on 4-for-4 from behind the arc. He also finished with seven rebounds. Jack Ferguson scored 18, Nelly Cummings 16, and Jeff Woodward 11 to lead the Raiders in double-figure scoring. 
 
Playing its first game in 13 days, Colgate dug itself an early hole allowing Lehigh to jump out to an early 17-6 lead. Lehigh's Wilson came out on fire, scoring 14 of his team's first 24 points.
 
The Raiders trailed 24-12 when Richardson canned a deep trey from the wing to spark a 7-2 run. Woodward and Cummings each had layups during the spurt to trim the Raiders' deficit to 30-23.

Ferguson converted a three-point play to cut the gap to 33-30 with 4:45 left in the half but Lehigh shot right back with back-to-back 3-pointers from Jake Betlow and Nic Lynch to carry a 44-38 lead at the break.
 
Ferguson connected on two treys to tie the game 52-52 six minutes into the second half. Colgate climbed all the way back to establish a late lead but the Raiders could not hold off the Mountain Hawks down the stretch en route to their fifth straight loss. 

FROM THE SOURCE
Head Coach Matt Langel

"Although we had most of the group for tonight's game, our practices since returning from break have been fractured and without the full compliment. Maybe that had a little to do with the rust. With that said, however, we will never make excuses because those who are successful in sport and in life manage well the circumstances they face. And today, we did not. We got down big early in the game and after working our way back, made too many costly mistakes to win the game.

"Winning on the road in conference play is hard to do. And credit Lehigh, they were locked in early and made the plays they needed to. They assisted on far more plays than they have been to date and we turned it over much more than necessary to get the result we wanted."

UP NEXT
Colgate is back in action Friday for its home Patriot League debut against American. Tipoff from Cotterell Court is 5 p.m. with the game streamed on ESPN+.