EASTON, Pa. (AP) -- Sean Knitter and Jamaal Douglas scored 16 points apiece and Lafayette held off a late Lehigh rally to preserve an 81-76 win on Saturday.
Jamaal Hilliard scored 15 points and Bilal Abdullah added 12, and each hit multiple free throws in the final minute to preserve the win for the Leopards (8-18, 5-9 Patriot League).
Lafayette held a 35-26 lead at the half and stretched the margin to 72-58 after Knitter's layup with 2:24 remaining. The Leopards held a 75-65 lead with 1:03 remaining.
Erik Smith hit a 3-pointer with 51 seconds to go and Kyle Neptune stole the inbounds pass and tipped in the rebound of a missed shot to make the score 75-70 with 44 seconds left. Jose Olivero's foul shots and layup brought Lehigh (13-14, 7-7) within one, 75-74.
But Abdullah and Hilliard each made a pair of free throws to give Lafayette a 79-74 lead with 11 seconds remaining. Jason Mgebroff hit a jumper with eight seconds left but Hilliard iced the game with two more free throws for the final margin.
Joe Knight scored 21 points for Lehigh while Mgebroff had 18 and Kyle Neptune added 11.
Lafayette used an early 22-7 run to grab a 10-point lead less than 10 minutes into the game, but Knight had six points in a 12-1 Lehigh spurt that gave the Mountain Hawks a 24-23 lead with 5:17 left in the half. Lafayette had another 10-0 run, with Douglas contributing two 3-pointers in the last 48 seconds, for the nine-point halftime lead.
