BETHLEHEM, Pa.--Maybe it was the 863 screaming fans. Maybe it was the fact that it was dragged six hours from home during Thanksgiving break on Saturday to play a non-conference opponent.

Whatever it was, the fire in the Harvard men's basketball team led to an offensive explosion of 50 points in the second half as the Crimson defeated Lehigh, 72-62 at Stabler Arena.

Junior forward Dan Clemente once again was the Crimson's high scorer with 20 points. Sophomore guard Andrew Gellert also chipped in 17, while captain Damian Long and junior center Tim Coleman also scored in double figures.

The Crimson improved to 3-0 for the fourth time in five years, and dating back to the end of last season, has won six straight games. But this wasn't one of its easier victories.

Lehigh (1-2) jumped out to a 14-2 lead seven minutes into the game. Employing a full-court press, the Mountain Hawks forced the Crimson ballhandlers into poor interior passing and in general were quicker to the ball than Harvard. Going inside didn't work either as 6'10 Lehigh junior Sah-U-Ra Brown had three of his four blocks in the first half.

Harvard shooters looked as if they had balls and chains attached to their feet. With 8:51 left in the first half, the Crimson had scored six points, shot 3-of-14 from the field and committed 10 turnovers.

"We really haven't been pressed all year," Gellert said. "Lehigh really caught us off-guard and it led to us making poor passing decisions."

Part of the problem was Clemente's poor start. He opened 1-of-5 from the floor and got into early foul trouble. He ended the first half with seven points and three fouls, playing just 14 minutes.