Tim Kempton

Classroom

Tim Kempton has enjoyed success in the classroom at a challenging institution. Lehigh University was recently named the 37th-best college in all of America by Business Insider and has been recognized among the top schools in the countries by several other media outlets. An economics major, Kempton was named to the Patriot League Academic Honor Roll as a freshman for a spring semester GPA over 3.2. He was also named to the Faculty Athletics Council Award on multiple occasions for a semester GPA over 3.2.

Character

Kempton is looked up to by teammates and others within Lehigh Athletics as a strong leader. He was a team co-captain last season as a junior. Despite beginning last season 0-7, Kempton helped keep the Mountain Hawks together, and the team responded by winning 11 straight games from Feb. 3 through Mar. 6 and advancing to the Patriot League Championship Game in 20016.

Kempton is also part of the Lehigh Athletics Leadership Academy. He has taken part in the P.R.I.D.E. program, which stands for Personal Responsibility in Determining Excellence. Kempton attended weekly workshops learning how to consistently navigate college athletically, academically and socially. He also took part in the Emerging Leaders cohort where he was trained to lead by example, develop relationships with teammates and gain the credibility to lead vocally in order to maximize individual and team performance. Kempton has taken part in Leadership Legacies as well, an extended program in the application of emotionally intelligent leadership and the navigation of team leadership challenges in partnership with their coaches.

Community

Kempton has been heavily involved with giving back to the community. Last spring, he visited a nearby elementary school in local Phillipsburg, New Jersey, to speak about careers and future goals. The Lehigh men’s basketball program also takes pride in making a difference in the community. Kempton and the Mountain Hawks have visited numerous local schools as part of the NABC Stay In To Win program, a program which sees college coaches and players join together with middle and high school teachers and administrators to motivate and encourage students to stay in school and graduate. Kempton has spoken at many assemblies about the importance of an education. Kempton and the Mountain Hawks have also visited various other elementary and middle schools.

Lehigh Athletics has two other key community programs with which Kempton is heavily involved. Every year, the Mountain Hawks head to local Donegan Elementary School for the Reading Rocks program. A different Lehigh Athletics team each week spends approximately one hour with the students, helping them read before getting to know the youngsters through playing games and other activities. Lehigh men’s basketball, along with every Lehigh Athletics team, also take part in Adopt-A-Family through which the Mountain Hawks provided a holiday for a local underprivileged family. The process included shopping for gifts, wrapping them and delivering them to the families in early December.

Competition

Kempton is a two-time Patriot League Player of the Year and honorable mention All-American. One of the premier big men in the country, he was one of just 20 student-athletes nationwide named to the watch list for the Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Center of the Year.

Kempton impressed from day one at Lehigh and has continued to take his game to the next level. As a freshman, Kempton averaged 13.0 points and 7.1 rebounds to earn Patriot League Rookie of the Year laurels. He went on to average 15.3 points and 8.7 boards as a sophomore and 17.7 points and 9.5 rebounds as a junior. Kempton posted 13 double-doubles last season, good for 47th nationally, including a stretch of eight double-doubles in nine games, which helped spring Lehigh to its 11-game winning streak. Kempton was named an NABC first-team All-District honoree as both a sophomore and junior, and was also named the team’s Athlete of the Year each of the last two seasons.

Kempton joined former standouts C.J. McCollum (Lehigh) and Adonal Foyle (Colgate) as the only players in league history to earn two Player of the Year awards before their senior seasons. Both McCollum and Foyle went on to the NBA. Kempton was also named the Patriot League Preseason Player of the Year this season.

Kempton has played his best basketball against the top competition. One highlight came during his sophomore season when he recorded a double-double against each of Lehigh’s three power conference opponents: Villanova, DePaul and Arizona State.