BU Men’s Basketball Takes on Lehigh Wednesday in Patriot League Championship
Terriers are are after their second PL conference title
After earning the No. 4 seed in the Patriot League tournament, the BU men’s basketball team upset top seed Navy with a miracle shot at the buzzer and will play at Lehigh Wednesday for the conference title. Photos by Dan Koerner/BU Athletics
After Buzzer-Beating Semifinal Win, BU Men’s Basketball Takes On Lehigh Wednesday in Patriot League Championship
Terriers chase their second conference title and a chance to play in March Madness
Chance Gladden has dreamed of playing in the NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Tournament—better known as March Madness—since he was eight years old.
After his miraculous game-winning three-pointer for the Boston University men’s basketball team’s 73-72 victory Sunday over top-seeded Navy in the Patriot League semifinal, he’s closer than ever to achieving that dream.
“I’ve been around basketball all my life, watching March Madness, the tournament, and all that,” Gladden (CAS’29) says. “It would mean the world to me.”
Gladden’s buzzer-beating game-winner, a running jump shot from about 40 feet out, gave him “a surreal feeling,” he says. Online, the shot has generated millions of views, but more important, it advanced the No. 4 Terriers to the championship game Wednesday, where they’ll take on second-seeded Lehigh University in Bethlehem, Pa.
It’s BU’s first Patriot League championship game since 2020. The Terriers won that game, but lost the chance to compete in March Madness because the COVID-19 pandemic canceled the tournament.
A second Patriot League title for the program and competing in the national tournament for the first time since 2011 would mean a lot to the current players and coaches after the challenges they’ve faced this season. The team has dealt with extensive injuries all year.
“When you fight and you fight through adversity and you want to win and you want to buy into what the group has offered, no matter how many guys you have,” guard Michael McNair (CAS’27) says, “I think it shows the power in that.”
The Terriers have faced the Lehigh Mountain Hawks twice this season and lost both games, albeit both were close. BU fell to Lehigh 93-91 in overtime at home January 14 and 70-67 on the road February 22.
BU goes into the championship having won 9 of its last 10 games, but the lone loss came two and a half weeks ago—against Lehigh.
The Terriers’ preparation for the championship game has included watching films to identify what they need to do better to be successful—and that starts with defense and protecting the ball.
“We’ve really got to cut down on our turnovers offensively, because that’s probably our biggest hurdle right now,” head coach Joe Jones says. “We’ve got to be able to win the 50/50 balls and outhustle and outcompete our opponent on their floor.”
“We want to rebound a lot better. The last two games we haven’t rebounded very well, so we want that to be a very big point of emphasis,” Gladden adds. “When we don’t have those turnovers, our offense really flows, and we get good shots and make those shots at a high percentage.”
During Sunday’s semifinal against Navy BU shot 55 percent from the floor and 46 percent from behind the arc. Gladden led the way with 26 points, 24 in the second half. McNair tacked on 22, 17 of them in the first half. The Terriers will need big games from both players against the Mountain Hawks.
The two “have really stepped up their game this year with all the injuries,” Jones says. “We’ve been able to ride them—they’ve delivered time and time again.”
Although Lehigh is a well-balanced and well-coached team, the Terriers feel strongly that Wednesday’s matchup will lead to a BU victory.
“We’re very confident. We’ve always been confident throughout the year, whether we were winning or losing—that’s what makes us dangerous,” McNair says.
The BU men’s basketball team battles Lehigh in the Patriot League Championship Wednesday, March 11, at 7 pm in Bethlehem, Pa. The game will be broadcast on CBS Sports Network.