{"id":36940,"date":"2023-02-25T17:05:29","date_gmt":"2023-02-25T22:05:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/wtbu\/?p=36940"},"modified":"2023-02-25T17:05:29","modified_gmt":"2023-02-25T22:05:29","slug":"mens-basketball-terriers-end-regular-season-with-gutsy-win-over-lehigh","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/wtbu\/2023\/02\/25\/mens-basketball-terriers-end-regular-season-with-gutsy-win-over-lehigh\/","title":{"rendered":"Men\u2019s Basketball: Terriers End Regular Season with Gutsy Win over Lehigh"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Charlie DeMatteo<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

Cover Photo Credit: Stevie Potter<\/em><\/p>\n

Boston University Men\u2019s Basketball (15-16, 8-10 PL) won their third consecutive game on Saturday at Case Gym in Boston with a 59-56 victory over Lehigh University (16-13, 11-7 PL).<\/span><\/p>\n

In a game that saw barely anything separate the two teams, BU was able to maintain their composure in a packed Case Gymnasium and edge out the win over the Mountain Hawks.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cObviously it was a heated game with a playoff atmosphere,\u201d BU Head Coach Joe Jones said. \u201cOverall, I was really happy [with dealing with the atmosphere], but I think we can play a lot better.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

A tight first half saw both teams executing well on the offensive end. 10 minutes into the game, BU was shooting the ball at 60% from the field and was creating high-percentage looks on offense.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Senior forward Nevin Zink went down after a hit just a few minutes into the game, but Jones was pleased with how sophomore Malcolm Chimezie and freshman Otto Landrum stepped up in his place.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cMalcolm played really well, especially in the first half he was getting every rebound,\u201d Jones said. \u201cOtto, as the year has gone on, has improved, and he\u2019s got a bright future if he continues to work.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Of Lehigh\u2019s 28 first-half points, 22 were collectively scored by sophomore guard Keith Higgins Jr., senior guard Evan Taylor and sophomore guard Tyler Whitney-Sidney. Lehigh\u2019s three leading scorers all year long led them again against the Terriers, and Jones understood what was needed to keep them quiet.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe just wanted to make it hard for them,\u201d Jones said. \u201cWe didn\u2019t want them to score the way they are accustomed to scoring.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Whitney-Sydney finished with 14, Higgins Jr. added 13, and Taylor had 10 of his own.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Graduate wing Walter Whyte led all scorers with 19 points, but was tasked with guarding Lehigh\u2019s three leading players during the game.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThey have three guys that can really go,\u201d Whyte said. \u201cThat was a big key, for those three guys we had to limit their production.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

An 8-0 run capped off by a couple 3-pointers by senior guard Miles Brewster and a jumper by Whyte to end the first half gave BU a 30-28 advantage heading into the break. Brewster finished with 13 points and seven rebounds.<\/span><\/p>\n

BU started the second half as they ended the first, with a 3-pointer from graduate guard Jonas Harper capping off a 7-0 run. Harper was one of nine seniors\/graduates being honored at BU\u2019s Senior Day.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWhat a wonderful group of guys we\u2019ve had,\u201d Jones said. \u201cI feel really fortunate to go into practice everyday with this group.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

While BU seemed to have pulled away from Lehigh after a Whyte 3-pointer put them up nine, a 10-0 run by Lehigh saw the Terriers go down one with 7:11 to play.<\/span><\/p>\n

With tensions rising in the gym after senior guard Ethan Brittain-Watts was handed a double technical and ejected from the game, Brewster stepped up. Driving to the basket past multiple River Hawk defenders, Brewster fought through contact and finished for an And-1 as Case Gym erupted.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe atmosphere was so fun,\u201d Brewster said. \u201cEvery time I was catching the ball, I was trying to be aggressive.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

With BU up one with 48 seconds to play, Lehigh grabbed a defensive rebound and tried to push quickly before Brewster made an acrobatic steal at half-court. Brewster was quickly fouled and Case Gym went bananas.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI remember when I caught the steal at the end of the game, I know I shouldn\u2019t be thinking about it but I saw Case Gym just erupted,\u201d Brewster said. \u201cThat\u2019s what you live for as a basketball player.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Just when it looked like BU was out of the woods after a pair of Brewster free throws put them up four, a 3 from Lehigh junior guard Jalin Sinclair quieted Case Gym with just 4.3 seconds left on the clock.<\/span><\/p>\n

Forced to foul, Lehigh sent Whyte to the line. Whyte knocked down both free throws to give BU the win.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s been a long journey,” Whyte said. “Coach Jones gave me an opportunity and I ran with it. I love him, and we\u2019re going until the end. We\u2019re going to make this run.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Whyte and company will start their Patriot League Tournament at home at 7 p.m. on Thursday, after earning a first-round bye.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Charlie DeMatteo Cover Photo Credit: Stevie Potter Boston University Men\u2019s Basketball (15-16, 8-10 PL) won their third consecutive game on Saturday at Case Gym in Boston with a 59-56 victory over Lehigh University (16-13, 11-7 PL). In a game that saw barely anything separate the two teams, BU was able to maintain their composure […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":19881,"featured_media":36134,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1026,1027,19],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/wtbu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36940"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/wtbu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/wtbu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/wtbu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/19881"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/wtbu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=36940"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/wtbu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36940\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":36945,"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/wtbu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36940\/revisions\/36945"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/wtbu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/36134"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/wtbu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=36940"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/wtbu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=36940"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/wtbu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=36940"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}