Bucknell University
IUP (exhibition)
Bucknell Men's Basketball Impressive in 83-55 Exhibition Win over IUP
11/6/2004 7:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Nov. 6, 2004
LEWISBURG, Pa. - Charles Lee led five Bucknell players in double figures with 23 points as the Bison men's basketball team turned back Indiana (Pa.) 83-55 in a fast-paced exhibition game Saturday night at Sojka Pavilion. In its final tuneup prior to Thursday's season opener, Bucknell played most of the game without two starters, yet used stingy defense and good second-half shooting to race past the Indians.
The Bison defense forced 24 turnovers, picked up 15 steals and held IUP to 37.0 percent shooting. Meanwhile Bucknell shot 72.2 percent (13-18) in the second half and 52.0 percent overall. Donald Brown scored 15 for the Bison, followed by Darren Mastropaolo with 12, John Griffin with 11 and Kevin Bettencourt with 10.
IUP, the defending champions in the Division II Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference, received 12 points from G.J. Macon and 10 from Brian Kizzie. The Indians favor a high-speed, high-pressure game, but they made only one of their first seven shots and had eight turnovers in the first six minutes of the game as the Bison sprinted to a 16-3 lead.
Bucknell used a 19-2 run later in the half, capped by a Mastropaolo put-back, to take a 40-16 lead with 55 seconds left. But two 3-pointers by Macon in the final 30 seconds cut IUP's halftime deficit to 40-22, and the Indians scored the first five points of the second period to pull within 13 at 40-27.
Brown's fastbreak layup with 6:51 to play stretched the lead back to 19 at 62-43, but consecutive treys by Marc Williams and Kizzie brought IUP within 13 again at 62-49. Once more the Indians could get no closer, as Griffin immediately retaliated with a 16-foot jumper, sparking a decisive 21-4 Bison run that sealed the verdict.
Griffin cut to the glass to score on a nifty feed from Mastropaolo to make it 70-51, and another freshman tandem extended the lead moments later when Rob Thomas fed Mastropaolo for a layup and a 73-53 lead. The Bison also made 11 of their last 12 from the free-throw line.
Holland Mack's inside basket with 18 seconds left gave the Bison their largest lead of 30 points at 83-53.
Bucknell did not use starting center Chris McNaughton, who sat out with an ankle sprain, and point guard Abe Badmus played only four minutes after nursing a minor injury this week in practice. Both players are expected to be in the lineup when the Bison square off against Princeton in the opening round of the Coaches vs. Cancer Classic a 5:30 p.m. Thursday at the Carrier Dome in Syracuse, N.Y.
