PRINCESS ANNE, Maryland — The University of Maryland Eastern Shore men's basketball team held down a strong Lehigh University offense, leaving the Hytche with a 64-60 victory over the visiting Mountain Hawks.
The win marks the second-straight for UMES against Lehigh after defeating the Mountain Hawks in their house at Stabler Arena last December.
Both teams struggled to find their footing offensively in the opening half. Both squads shot below 35 percent from the field through 20 minutes, with the score knotted at 27-27.
UMES snatched eight steals in the opening half, helping contribute to the 13 Mountain Hawk turnovers in the opening period.
The Hawks came out of the locker room with answers to their first-half questions. In addition to holding Lehigh to nearly the exact same percentage from the field, UMES sank 46 percent of their shots and made 12 free throws to pull away from the visitors.
"It was great to defend our home court, and great to pull out a win on a night where I didn't think we played great offense," head coach Jason Crafton said. "Lehigh averages 77 points a game, to hold them to 60 showed the great defensive effort by our guys."
Da'Shawn Phillip set a new career-high with 17 points in the victory. Phillip set his previous career mark (16) in the December matchup with the Mountain Hawks last season.
In his return to the court for the Hawks, Kevon Voyles provided a key spark off the bench. Voyles finished second on the team with 16 points as well as five rebounds and two steals in the win.
Zion Styles was the third Hawk to finish in double-digits, posting a 10 and 6 night. Nathaniel Pollard, Jr. was a force defensively, hauling in a game-high 10 boards with three steals and a block while also providing eight points on the offensive end.
A key measure of success for UMES defensively was going to be how they defended Evan Taylor, the top scorer for Lehigh. Taylor, who averaged nearly 15 points per game entering play, finished with just five on Wednesday night.
"I'd say this is back-to-back games now where we have eliminated a team's leading scorer," Crafton said. "I thought we rebounded the ball well, it's a very big team and we only were outrebounded by one … it was a big time win for us."
The Hawks will have to enjoy the victory while they pack for the trip to Liberty University. UMES faces off with the Flames on Friday, December 2 with tip scheduled for 7 p.m.
