WORCESTER, Mass. – Junior forward Gerrale Gates posted his second straight double-double with a career-high 23 points and 10 rebounds, but the Holy Cross men's basketball team was defeated by Lehigh 75-72 at the Hart Center at the Luth Athletic Complex. The Crusaders fall to 2-5 overall and 2-5 in the Patriot League with the loss, while the Mountain Hawks improve to 2-5 on the season and 2-5 in the conference. 

Freshman guard R.J. Johnson finished the day with a career-high 17 points and eight assists. Senior forward Matt Faw added 14 points and six rebounds, while senior guard Austin Butler tallied 11 points and seven boards. Lehigh was led by Jeameril Wilson with 15 points.

After Holy Cross opened the game with an early 9-3 lead, the Mountain Hawks scored 10 straight point to pull in front (13-9). Lehigh was later up 26-22 with 6:35 remaining in the first half, when it used an 11-0 run to expand its lead to double digits (37-22). The Mountain Hawks eventually took a 39-25 advantage into the locker room.

The Crusaders opened the second half with a 7-0 spurt to narrow the gap, and went to close to within one point (62-61) with six minutes left in regulation. Lehigh was later up 66-64, when it scored six straight point to go back up by eight (72-64) with two minutes to play. A pair of three-pointers by Johnson kept Holy Cross close, and the Crusaders would get the ball back with 7.9 seconds left down by three (75-72). But Johnson's three-point attempt at the buzzer was off the mark, and the Mountain Hawks held on for the win.

Holy Cross made 48.3 percent of its field goals on the day, but only connected on 33.3 percent of its shots from three-point range. Lehigh was able to hit 49.1 percent of its shots from the floor and 42.9 percent of its three-pointers.

The Crusaders will face the Mountain Hawks again tomorrow at the Hart Center, with tipoff set for 2:00 p.m.