The Eagles defeated the Lehigh Mountain Hawks in thrilling but familiar fashion Wednesday Jan. 14 night in Bender Arena.
With .08 seconds remaining in game and the score tied 59-59, senior point guard Darius “Pee Wee” Gardner took the ball the length of the court and drained a three pointer to give AU the lead at the end of regulation. Gardner’s shot, his third buzzer-beater of the season, helped the Eagles maintain a perfect 5-0 record at home.
The win brought relief to head coach Mike Brennan.
“It was a typical league game,” Brennan said. “We stuck with it, and we have this guy right here [Pee Wee]. It’s good to win at home.”In the first half alone, the score was tied four times and the lead changed hands six times. Neither team led by more than six points, and both teams went into the half tied at 35.
Junior guard Jesse Reed led the Eagles in the first half, scoring 16 points on 5-7 shooting, and 3-5 from behind the three point arc. Mountain Hawks sophomore big man Tim Kempton led Lehigh through his dominant play down low, scoring 13 rebounds and pulling down five rebounds.
With about one minute left in the first half, Bender Arena held its breath as Gardner dove for a loose ball and crashed into the cheerleaders, sacrificing his body to grab an offensive rebound. He remained on the floor as the trainers tended to him, and eventually had to be subbed out. Gardner was able to return at the next dead ball and did not sit out another minute of the game.
"I just took what the defense gave me” Gardner said. “I saw the guy go way under the screen and the three-pointer was open. Thankfully it went in.”
As the second half began, Reed and Kempton took over the game for their respective teams.
Despite facing double teams all night, Kempton dominated the paint, finishing with 24 points and 11 rebounds. Reed finished with 27 points, one point away from his career high, on 10-14 shooting, going 4-7 from behind the arc.
“We played against one of the best big guys in the league in [Tim] Kempton” head coach Mike Brennan said. “He got off, but we did a good job in limiting the other guys.”
Lehigh (7-9, 1-4 PL), outscored AU in the paint 32-22 and outrebounded them 37-24. However, the Eagles hit nine three-pointers, which helped them overcome both of those deficits. AU (10-7, 3-2 PL) also moved the ball smoothly across the court and controlled possession, committing only eight turnovers.
The Eagles go on the back road for their next two Patriot league games, facing against Boston University and Lafayette, two of the top teams in the current Patriot League standings.
mholt@theeagleonline.com
