Men's Basketball Loses to Lehigh, 56-54, on Last-Second Free Throws
Feb. 3, 2007
WASHINGTON - Lehigh's Jose Olivero stepped to the line with 4.5 seconds left in regulation and sank a pair of free throws to give the Mountain Hawks a 56-54 victory over the American University men's basketball team Saturday in Bender Arena.
American held a slim lead throughout much of the second half, building it to six points twice in the period, including for the final time with 11:30 left on a jumper by Travis Lay. However, the Mountain Hawks whittled that lead away and tied the ballgame at 44 a piece with 6:26 left. Lehigh went on to build a five-point lead with just under five minutes remaining, but a resilient AU team fought back.
With less than a minute remaining, the Mountain Hawks held a two-point lead and had the ball, but Andre Ingram stepped up his defense and forced a turnover by Jose Olivero, giving the Eagles the ball with just under 20 seconds left. Head Coach Jeff Jones drew up a play designed for Arvydas Eitutavicius that worked to perfection, giving the 6-2 Lithuanian native an open jumper in the lane that he nailed with 14 seconds left to tie the game up at 54 a piece and set up Olivero's last-second heroics. Eitutavicius had the ball with just seconds left, but his three-pointer to win was released after the buzzer sounded.
Sophomore point guard Derrick Mercer scored 14 points and added a career-high two blocks in the loss, which drops the Eagles to 11-12 overall and 3-6 in the Patriot League. Eitutavicius finished with 13 points and four assists.
Olivero led the victors with 14 points and five rebounds in limited time due to foul trouble. Freshman Marquis Hall gave the Mountain Hawks 13 points, three assists and two steals. Lehigh improves to 10-14 overall and 5-3 in the PL.
American has a quick turnaround, hosting Bucknell on Tuesday, Feb. 6 at 8 p.m. The game is part of a women's / men's doubleheader, with the women's team taking on Bucknell at 5:30 p.m. For tickets, call (202) 885-TIXX or click here.
