Bucknell University
Lock Haven (exhibition)
Bucknell Men's Basketball Cruises to 91-53 Exhibition Win over Lock Haven
11/5/2005 7:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Nov. 5, 2005
LEWISBURG, Pa. - Freshman Jason Vegotsky (Yardley, Pa./Pennsbury) led all players with 19 points and eight rebounds and Bucknell sprinted to a 91-53 victory over Lock Haven in an exhibition men's basketball game Saturday night at Sojka Pavilion.
No Bison starter played more than 19 minutes, and only Vegotsky scored in double figures in a balanced offensive attack. Darren Mastropaolo (Falmouth, Maine/Falmouth), Donald Brown (Central Islip, N.Y./St. Thomas More), Kevin Bettencourt (Peabody, Mass./Peabody) and Justin Castleberry (Upper Marlboro, Md./Archbishop Spalding) all tallied nine points for Bucknell, while Andrew Morrison (Sea Isle, N.J./Wildwood Catholic) added eight and John Griffin (Philadelphia, Pa./St. Joseph's Prep) seven.
After shooting only 34.3 percent from the field in the first half, Bucknell upped the accuracy to 57.7 percent in a 51-point second half. The Bison outscored smaller Lock Haven 31-8 from the free-throw line and connected on 6 of 20 3-point attempts.
Defensively the Bison forced 19 turnovers and held Lock Haven to 37.3 percent shooting. Bucknell outrebounded the Eagles 52-25, with 24 caroms coming at the offensive end. Vegotsky and Griffin, both guards, led the way with eight and seven rebounds, respectively.
James Chappell scored 15 points and Bruce Kennedy had 11 to lead Lock Haven.
The Bison received 58 points from their bench, including 33 from freshmen Vegotsky, Castleberry and Josh Linthicum (Farmington, N.M./Virginia Episcopal School) (5 points). Vegotsky made 6 of 13 shots from the field, 3 of 8 from 3-point range and 4 of 5 from the foul line.
Back-to-back treys from Castleberry and Vegotsky gave Bucknell its first double-digit lead at 18-7 at the 11:18 mark of the first half. Griffin's 3-pointer with 4:39 left made it 31-11, and the Bison led by as many as 22 in the opening stanza before settling for a 40-21 halftime lead.
A pair of free throws by Castleberry put the Bison ahead by 35 at 66-31 nine minutes into the second half, but Lock Haven sliced into its hefty deficit with an 11-1 run, keyed by 3-pointers from Kennedy, Jason DeJesus and Michael Dye.
Bucknell stretched the lead back to 35 at 82-47 on Griffin's free throws, and the Bison led by as many as 40 at 91-51 on Vegotsky's fastbreak 3-point play off a pretty assist from Castleberry in the final minute.
The Bison finished with only 12 turnovers and had 17 assists on 27 field goals. They were 31 for 47 from the free-throw line after making their first 10 of the night.
Bucknell rested All-Patriot League guard Charles Lee (Gaithersburg, Md./Quince Orchard), who is nursing a minor injury.
Bucknell opens its 2005-06 regular season on Nov. 18 at Rider, with the home opener coming on Nov. 26 against Yale.
