Raiders Meet Lehigh in Patriot League Championship

HAMILTON – Colgate Men's Basketball goes for its fourth consecutive Patriot League championship on Wednesday night when the top-seeded Raiders host sixth-seeded Lehigh for a chance to dance. Tip-off from Cotterell Court is 7 p.m. Doors open at 5:30 p.m.

Tue, Mar 12, 2024

HAMILTON – Colgate Men's Basketball goes for its fourth consecutive Patriot League championship and fifth in six years on Wednesday night when the top-seeded Raiders host sixth-seeded Lehigh at 7 p.m. from Cotterell Court. Doors open at 5:30 p.m.

HOW WE GOT HERE
For the seventh consecutive year and sixth straight time in Hamilton, Colgate (24-9, 16-2 PL) is playing in the Patriot League championship with a trip to the NCAA tournament on the line. With four titles in five years the Raiders have vaulted into a tie with Holy Cross and Bucknell for the most league championships (6).

This latest run has not been easy, as the Raiders overcame a 15-point deficit to knock off fifth-seeded Bucknell 68-65 in the semifinals on Sunday. Patriot League Player of the Year Braeden Smith scored a game-high 21 points and Jalen Cox netted 14 of his career-high 15 in the second half to fuel the comeback against Bucknell. The 15-point comeback matched the largest deficit in a win this season for the Raiders, who also overcame a 15-point deficit to beat Navy 80-72 on Jan. 6 in Annapolis.

Colgate is led by head coach Matt Langel who in his 13th season is one win away from tying Lafayette 27-year head coach Fran O'Hanlon for the most Patriot League tournament wins in the league's history. Langel currently has 20 – with 18 of those since 2017-18. Langel is tied with Holy Cross' Ralph Willard for the most Patriot League championships (4) of any Patriot League head coach.

Smith is Colgate's leading scorer averaging 12.5 points per game and the sophomore star does a little bit of everything averaging 5.8 assists, 5.3 rebounds, and 1.9 steals per game. Fifth-year seniors Keegan Records (11.0) and Ryan Moffatt (10.7) are also averaging double figures.

SCOUTING LEHIGH
Lehigh (14-17, 9-9 PL) saw Colgate's 15-point semifinal comeback and raised the bar with a 21-point comeback at second-seeded Boston University on Sunday. First-year guard Cam Gillus averages a little more than five points per game but exploded for 30 in the 84-79 overtime victory. Lehigh rolled past Lafayette in the quarterfinals 76-61 for its third win over the Leopards this season.

Lehigh is searching for its fourth Patriot League championship and first since 2012 under 17th-year head coach Brett Reed. The Mountain Hawks have three players averaging double-figures led by Tyler Whitney-Sidney at 15.4 points per game. Keith Higgins Jr., an All-League First Team selection last season, is averaging 12.8 points per game followed by Dominic Parolin (11.5).

SEASON MEETINGS
The two regular season meetings between these two teams couldn't have been much closer. Colgate won both games by three points – first a 60-57 win on Jan. 22 in Hamilton followed by a 63-60 victory in the regular season finale on March 2 in Bethlehem.

Brady Cummins' go-ahead layup with 4:34 left in regulation gave Colgate the lead for good in the first meeting after the lead changed hands multiple times in the second half. Nicolas Louis-Jacques was Colgate's lone double-figure scorer with 12 points behind four made treys.

Louis-Jacques and Records went 4-for-4 from the free throw line in the final 15 seconds of regulation to help Colgate hold off Lehigh 63-60 in the return game in Bethlehem. The Raiders led by as many as 14 points and held a 10-point edge at halftime. Lehigh charged back but ultimately came up short in the three-point decision. Records and Jeff Woodward combined for 22 points and 18 rebounds.

THE COLGATE-LEHIGH SERIES
The two teams meet for the 106th time on Wednesday and it will be their first-ever Patriot League championship matchup. Colgate leads the series 63-42 and has won six consecutive head-to-head games. Lehigh's last win in the series came at Stabler Arena in 2022. The teams have met 10 times in the Patriot League tournament with Lehigh leading 6-4. The teams last met in the 2021-22 Patriot League semifinals when Colgate came away with the victory 81-61 at Cotterell Court.

UP NEXT
The winner of the championship game will receive the Patriot League's automatic bid to the NCAA Men's Basketball Championship.