Lehigh

A review of the week that was in college basketball focusing on the best (and worst) performances. Check in every Monday morning for our weekly awards.

 

PLAYER OF THE WEEK

In-season tournaments can be tricky to analyze when the dust settles. Sometimes the winning team can build on the experience and move on to bigger and better things, with last year's Connecticut team (Maui Invitational champs) being a prime example. Others, like Minnesota (last year's Puerto Rico Tip-Off champs) can temporarily hide flaws that get exposed later in the season. Essentially these early season results should be taken with a grain of salt, because while we see flashes of teams in reality it's a small sample size.

While much of the college sports world was captivated by the goings on in State College, PA, four college basketball games were being played. And one of the four teams expected to win fell at the hands of the defending MAC Tournament champs, but in hindsight it wasn't much of an "upset". Behind 19 points from Quincy Diggs the Zips beat Mississippi State 68-58 at The Hump. Simply put, Keith Dambrot's team outworked and outplayed the Bulldogs, who weren't as effective as they were on Monday night and it cost them.

Tonight brings the second day of college basketball games that count with the four host teams in the 2K Sports Classic Benefitting Coaches vs. Cancer on the floor. Arizona, Mississippi State and St. John's all played games on Monday night, and tonight marks the beginning of the season for the Texas A&M Aggies. The Aggies are expected by many to contend in the Big 12, but things haven't gone as smoothly as anyone connected to the program would have hoped.

In the latest installment of his great players interview series CHN writer Jon Teitel spent some time with Lehigh great Daren Queenan, who still leads the program in points scored and rebounds. Queenan is also one of just eight players in the history of Division I college basketball to finish with at least 2,700 points and 1,000 rebounds for his career. With Queenan leading the way, Lehigh made two NCAA Tournament appearances during his time in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.  

Next up in Jon Teitel's interview series is Lehigh point guard Marquis Hall, the man whose responsibility is to get the ball to stars C.J. McCollum and Zahir Carrington. First up for the Patriot League champion Mountain Hawks: none other than top-ranked Kansas. 

In the latest installment of his interview series, CHN writer Jon Teitel spent some time with Lehigh head coach Brett Reed, whose Patriot League champion squad will take on top overall seed Kansas in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. 

Jon Teitel: You began your collegiate coaching career at Oakland CC where you were an assistant for your father Lynn (who won the National Junior College championship in 1987). What role has your father had on your coaching life, and what role has he had on your non-coaching life?

Lehigh Mountain Hawks

Patriot League (22-10, 10-4)

 

Being the best player on a Top 15 team is a recipe for earning CollegeHoops.net's Mid-Major Player of the Year honors. Gordon Hayward averaged 15.4 ppg, 8.5 rpg, and 1.8 apg in leading Butler to a 28-4 record. He's joined on the Mid-Major First Team by CAA Player of the Year Charles Jenkins, Cornell leader Ryan Wittman, and big men Keith Benson of Oakland and Art Parakouski of Radford.