WASHINGTON - With a Patriot League Tournament quarterfinal game in Bender Arena at stake, American University men's basketball hosts Lehigh at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 25. The Eagles return home riding a three-game winning streak and are tied with the Mountain Hawks for third place in the league standings. While not mathematically a must-win for either side, Wednesday's matchup gives the winner control of its path to a top-four seed and a home quarterfinal on March 5.
Quick Info
- Date/Time: Wednesday, February 25; 7 pm
- Site: Washington, D.C. (Bender Arena)
- Series History: Lehigh leads, 35-30
- TV: ESPN+
- Talent: Dan Laing, Gordon Austin
2026 Giving Day
- American University's annual Giving Day campaign runs right through Wednesday night's home game, starting that morning and ending Thursday night.
- Visit AUEagles.com/GivingDay to be part of this year's effort to support our nearly 300 student-athletes. Every gift counts!
Parking Information
- Parking on campus is $10 per contest for games held after 5 p.m. on weekdays and all day on weekends, available through the PayByPhone app in any garage using code (211950).
- Standard hourly garage rates apply from 8 am-10 pm in the Katzen Arts Center and School of International Service garages.
Bender Bites and The Perch
- The Perch is a special section behind the north basket where fans ages 21 and over can purchase beer, wine and seltzers.
- New this season to the concessions area is Bender Bites, in partnership with AU Kitchen. The menu is expanded from past offerings, and there will be multiple areas for purchasing food, snacks and drinks around the arena.
Series History
- There are 64 games on record between American and Lehigh, with Lehigh leading 35-30.
- The Mountain Hawks had won four of five before the Eagles swept two close games in the series in 2024-25, but Lehigh won 90-82 on its home court this season on Feb. 11.
- Lincoln Ball hit a shot at the buzzer for a 68-67 AU win at home on Jan. 22, 2025, and the Eagles gutted out a 78-75 road win in overtime on Feb. 8, 2025 behind 27 points from Matt Rogers and 23 from Elijah Stephens.
- The teams split meetings in 2023-24 with each winning on its home court. AU holds a 17-11 lead all-time in home games, but Lehigh leads 23-9 in Bethlehem.
What to Know About American
- The Eagles are back on track and are tied for third in the Patriot League after winning three straight games following a five-game skid.
- The winner of Wednesday's game will clinch a top-four seed and the right to host a PL quarterfinal on March 5.
- Saturday's game against BU (fifth place) also has implications for tournament seeding and quarterfinal hosting rights, particularly if the Eagles were to lose on Wednesday.
- Senior Geoff Sprouse exploded for a career-high 28 points in Sunday's win at Lafayette, hitting a career-high eight triples (8-for-11) to tie for the most by a PL player in a single game this season.
- Freshman Madden Collins has led the Eagles in scoring in 10 games this season including in the first two games of the current three-game win streak. He scored 22 points against Army and 16 at Bucknell.
- AU remains the only Patriot League team to have beaten Navy this season, winning 65-51 behind a career-high 23 points from Greg Jones.
- Seven players—Madden Collins, Greg Jones, Julen Iturbe, Wyatt Nausadis, Kade Sebastian, Geoff Sprouse, and Dean Hogans—have all been leading scorers for AU this season.
- Collins leads the Eagles with 13.5 points per game, with Jones close behind at 12.1 points per game. Jones recently reached double digits in scoring in 10 straight games, and has done so in 15 of the last 17 games.
- As a team, AU leads the PL in turnover margin (2.28), and steals (7.72 per game). The Eagles rank second in scoring defense (71.1 ppg), scoring margin (3.9 ppg), and free-throw percentage (.756).
- Sprouse ranks fourth with 2.4 3-pt FG made per game.
What to Know About Lehigh
- Lehigh comes into Wednesday's game at 9-7 in the PL and tied with American for third place. The Mountain Hawks won the first game of the series, 90-82.
- The Mountain Hawks have won three of their last four, losing only to regular season champion Navy. Lehigh is coming off a 70-67 home win over Boston University on Feb. 22.
- Lehigh also boasts a pair of one-point wins over second-place Colgate. The Mountain Hawks won 78-77 at Colgate on Jan. 10, then edged the Raiders 77-76 in overtime at home on Jan. 31.
- Junior guard Nasir Whitlock leads the team, scoring 20.6 points per game. That leads the Patriot League and is 22nd nationally. Whitlock's .424 three-point percentage is third in the conference.
- Sophomore big man Hank Alvey adds 14.0 points a contest and a team-best 7.0 rebounds per game, second in the Patriot League.
- Brett Reed, now in his 19th season at Lehigh, is the Mountain Hawks' winningest coach all time. Lehigh's victory over BU marked the 300th career win for Reed.
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