Seton Hall falls to Lehigh, 75-68, in Samuels' absence

Date: November 22, 2019

By: Joe Cammarota

Seton Hall went into Lehigh without star Shadeen Samuels and fell to the undefeated Lehigh Mountain Hawks 75-68. For Seton Hall, in Samuels’ absence, Desiree Elmore dropped 20 points and Alexis Lewis pitched in 17 points. The Mountain Hawks were led by the two Cameryn’s, with Cameryn Buhr scoring 20 points and Cameryn Benz scoring 16, respectively.

The first quarter did not go in favor of Seton hall as Lehigh was able to take advantage of home cooking and jump to a 12-6 lead halfway through. This was mostly due to Lehigh’s paint presence, led by Benz who scored seven in the quarter alone. Lehigh’s “bully ball” continued the rest of the half. Seton Hall fought back in the quarter though, due to three three-point baskets, but at the end of the first they trailed 22-16.

Lehigh held their lead and showed toughness as they weathered a Seton Hall run in which the Hall tied the game 30-30 at the 3:30 mark. Seton Hall was able to continue their three-point barrage hitting two threes early on thanks to Mya Jackson.

After the pirates tied up the game, the Mountain Hawks retook control, going on a ten to four run in the last 3:11 of the half. Lehigh was able to finish the half with a 40- 34 lead and looked to continue their advantage for the rest of the game, with help from an and-1 from Clair Steele and a Katie Rice three to end the half on a high note for the Mountain Hawks.

The third quarter was a high action quarter with points going back and fourth early on. Buhr scored seven points in the first five minutes of the quarter. After a Buhr three-point basket at the 6:07 mark which made the score 47-38, Seton Hall went on a seven to nothing run to claw back into the game. Seton Hall took their first lead of the game at the 1:24 mark of the third quarter with a 50-49 lead. Seton Hall was able to finish the third quarter with a 54-53 lead.

Going into the fourth quarter, Seton Hall looked to hold the lead that they worked so hard to get. Seton Hall opened the half with a Jackson three to extend the Seton Hall lead to 57-53. Unfortunately, it would not be that easy, as Lehigh was able to retake the lead 58-57 and after back and forth action in the last seven minutes of the game kept it. Lehigh was led by a multitude of scorers on the fourth quarter, which helped lead Lehigh to the 75-68 victory.

Seton Hall takes on Georgia Tech on Thanksgiving at 5:15 p.m. at Gateway Christian Academy in the Bahamas.

Joe Cammarota can be reached at joseph.cammarota@student.shu.edu.

Posted in: WSOU, Sports, Women's Basketball