Jan. 30, 2002
BETHLEHEM, Pa. (www.lafayette.edu) - Lafayette used clutch free throw shooting and 17 points from Brian Burke to prevail 68-63 in a back and forth game at Lehigh on Wednesday.
It was a tight game for the entire first half with Lehigh holding a slight lead for the majority. Lafayette trailed by seven points with 2:16 left when Lehigh's Matt Logie put in a fast-break layup to put the Mountain Hawks up 31-24. Burke brought Lafayette (10-10, 4-3) within four points (31-27) when he hit an NBA-range three-pointer as the half ran out.
Lehigh's (4-16, 1-6) rebounding was the difference in the first half. The Leopards were outrebounded 29-14. Lafayette was hamstrung on the boards as Mike Farrell was limited to just one minute in the first half after picking up two fouls in the first 1:08.
The second half saw nine ties and eight lead changes between the two archrivals. Each team took a turn leading by as many as six in the half, but the teams were tied for the final time at 63-63 with 1:03 left.
Burke tied the game and then gave Lafayette a 64-63 lead with a pair of foul shots. After a Lehigh turnover, Burke was fouled again on an inbounds pass. He went to the line and sank both shots to give Lafayette a 66-63 lead with 30.6 seconds left. Burke finished the night 6-for-6 from the line and extended his streak of consecutive free throws to 33.
On the next Lehigh possession, the Lafayette defense forced a three-point shot by Eric Heil that went long and into the arms of Reggie Guy. Guy pushed the ball up the floor and was fouled. He sank both free throws to seal the final at 68-63.
Lafayette, which did not shoot any free throws in the first half, made 14-of-16 (88%) in the decisive session. The Leopards also cut the rebounding margin from 15 in the first half to just two in the second half.
Justin DeBerry (12) and Mick Kuberka (10) joined Burke in double figures. Lehigh was led by 20 points from Scott Taylor and 10 from Alex Jensen.
Lafayette returns to action on Saturday vs. Bucknell when the Leopards look to avenge a one-point road loss from Jan. 9. Tip off is slated for 3:15 p.m. at Kirby Sports Center. Tickets are still available and can be purchased right here at GoLeopards.com.
