December 2, 2008 | AP Press

BETHLEHEM, PA — Ahmad Nivins scored a game-high 20 points and added 17 rebounds to lead St. Joseph’s to a 77-64 victory over Lehigh on Tuesday night.

Darrin Govens added 16 points and Idris Hilliard contributed 15 for St. Joseph’s (3-3).

Marquis Hall scored 18 points for Lehigh (5-2) while Zahir Carrington had 13 points, Prentice Small added 12 and Rob Keefer had 10.

The Hawks took a 65-55 lead and then made nine of 10 free throws in the final two minutes, while Lehigh missed six 3-point attempts over the same period.

Govens opened the game with a pair of 3-pointers to start a 10-2 spurt that gave St. Joseph’s the lead for good on the way to a 35-24 halftime lead. Lehigh had a six-point run in the second half to close to within 44-40, but the Hawks answered with a 7-2 run to extend the margin to 51-42.