BETHLEHEM, Pa. – Facing foul trouble, overtime pressure, and a relentless Lehigh squad for a second time this season, American University men's basketball found a way to win. Behind 27 points from
Matt Rogers and a career-tying 23 from
Elijah Stephens, the Eagles battled through 14 ties, nine lead changes, and 31 team fouls to grind out a 78-75 overtime victory. The win completes a season sweep of Lehigh (9-14, 4-8) and keeps AU (15-10, 9-3) atop the Patriot League standings.
Notable Numbers
- Rogers put in 11-of-18 from the field and made 5-of-7 foul shots in his 27-point effort. With 127 games played in his AU career, Rogers has now tied John Schoof (2011-15) for first place in program history.
- The Eagles needed every free-throw opportunity that came their way, and Stephens converted on 7-of-8 of his attempts as well as on 7-of-11 from the field. His 23 points are a season high, and tie his career high as well.
- Colin Smalls made crucial plays down the stretch of regulation, and hit 4-of-4 at the stripe on his way to nine points.
- Matt Mayock also converted on all four of his attempts at the line and also finished with nine points.
- The Eagles made just five three-pointers, well below their average, but made 23-of-27 free throws.
- AU also out-rebounded the Mountain Hawks, 38-35, behind a game-high eight rebounds from Lincoln Ball. After scoring just one point in the first half, Ball made three field goals in the second to finish with eight points.
First Half
- Rogers and Stephens accounted for 17 of AU's 25 first-half points, hitting 8-for-13 combined while the rest of the team went just 2 for-16.
- Mayock drained a three-pointer at 14:47 that started a short, 6-0 run for AU, putting the Eagles up by their largest margin of six points, 13-7 at 12:43.
- AU held the Mountain Hawks scoreless for nearly five minutes during the run, but the lead evaporated quickly when Lehigh's shots started to fall.
- With a 9-0 run, Lehigh went up 23-17 at 5:22, and matched that six-point lead again at 25-19.
- Stephens made it a one-point game with 2:45 remaining, but the Eagles were scoreless the rest of the way as Lehigh went back up by four and led 29-25 at the break.
- The Eagles hit two of their first four attempts from long range, but were 0-for-10 after that.
- Lehigh's Tyler Whitney-Sidney matched Rogers with 10 points at halftime, and Lehigh shot 55.6 percent to AU's 34.5 percent.
Second Half
- Just like in the first, the largest lead of the second half was six points. That belonged to AU with under two minutes remaining, but the Mountain Hawks tied it up by the end.
- The second half saw a total of 11 ties including the final one, and seven lead changes in a defensive battle.
- After the a tie at 48-48, Smalls scored five straight points that put AU ahead until the final point of regulation.
- Rogers gave the Eagles a 63-60 lead with less than a minute to go, but the Mountain Hawks scored with 23 seconds left to get within a point.
- Stephens' only free-throw miss of the game led to a two-point lead at 16 seconds rather than a three-point advantage, and Ball was whistled for his fifth foul with one second left in regulation.
- Lehigh's Joshua Ingram hit both foul shots to send the game to overtime, 64-64.
Overtime
- Stephens scored right out of the gate for a lead in overtime that AU never relinquished.
- Rogers made it a 6-0 run with a putback at 3:17, and Lehigh was unable to come within fewer than four until its final free throws in the last few seconds.
- Mayock made a pair of free throws with 1:20 left, and Stephens went 4-of-4 in the final 30 seconds to keep Lehigh at bay.
Up Next
- The Eagles return home to Bender Arena to play Lafayette on Monday, Feb. 10 on CBS Sports Network at 6 p.m. For tickets, click HERE.
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