Bucknell University Athletics
Bucknell Men's Basketball to Compete in Cable Car Classic Dec. 28-29
12/23/2005 7:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Dec. 23, 2005
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After a brief holiday rest, Bucknell looks to continue its terrific start this week at the famed Cable Car Classic, hosted by Santa Clara. The Bison, off to their best start since 1956-57 at 8-1, take on Boston University in the opening round, with Santa Clara and UC Riverside pairing up in the other first-round game. This will be Bucknell's first-ever appearance in the Cable Car Classic, which has been a Bay Area tradition since 1967. This year's field presents three unfamiliar programs, as the Bison have never before played Boston U., UC Riverside or Santa Clara. Just before the holiday break Bucknell completed a four-game homestand with three straight victories. The only loss during that period came at the hands of No. 4 Villanova (79-60), then the Orange & Blue rebounded with consecutive wins over Cornell (83-39), Haverford (76-44) and Saint Joseph's (63-51) in a five-day period. Junior center Chris McNaughton continues to lead the team in scoring at 15.0 ppg. McNaughton has scored in double figures in every game this season and is shooting 67.8% from the field, fifth-best in the nation. Senior co-captains Kevin Bettencourt (13.7) and Charles Lee (11.3) are also scoring in double figures.
with a victory over boston university, bucknell would ...
• ... win its fourth straight game.
• ... go to 9-1 for the first time since 1956-57.
• ... advance to the championship game of an in-season tournament for the sixth time since 2001-02.
• ... improve to 24-7 in the 2005 calendar year.
• ... take a 1-0 series lead against BU.
last time out: tight defense leads bucknell past saint joseph's, 63-51
Defense has long been the trademark of Pat Flannery-coached teams, and things were no different last Wednesday when the Bison smothered Saint Joseph's 63-51. The Hawks came into the game ranked seventh nationally in 3-point shooting accuracy, led by national individual leader Chet Stachitas at 63.0%. But Bucknell held them to a 5-for-22 showing from beyond the arc and 36.2% shooting overall, while forcing 15 turnovers. Stachitas was just 2-for-11 from long distance and 3-for-14 overall. Trailing 13-8 early, Bucknell hit four treys of its own in a 16-0 run, and the Hawks never got closer than seven points the rest of the night. Kevin Bettencourt led the way with 17 points, while Charles Lee added 14, Chris McNaughton 12 and John Griffin 10 off the bench. Bucknell shot 53.8% from the floor, including 7-for-12 from 3-point distance. (See complete recap and boxscore on p. 23.)
inside the boxscore
Bucknell outrebounded Saint Joseph's 31-26 ... Charles Lee dished a season-high five assists ... Chris McNaughton canned his second career 3-pointer ... the crowd of 4,252 was the second-largest in Bucknell basketball history, trailing only the 4,433 who watched the Villanova game on Dec. 6 ... the Bison struggled from the free-throw line, finishing 14-for-28, but they hit 7 of 8 during one late stretch to put the game away.
slump busting
Sophomore guard John Griffin entered the Saint Joseph's game in a 3-for-17 shooting slump, but he regained his stroke in a big way against the Hawks. Griffin, the first guard off Bucknell's bench, played a major role in the victory with starting point guard Abe Badmus saddled with foul trouble for much of the night. Griffin made 3 of 5 shots from 3-point range and finished with 10 points, three assists, two steals and two rebounds. In Bucknell's decisive 16-0 run, he hit two treys, stole a crosscourt pass and fed Badmus for a fastbreak layup. Griffin, who attended Saint Joseph's Prep, is the son of former Hawks coach John Griffin Sr.
bucknell in in-season tournaments
Bucknell is 49-61 (.445) all-time in in-season tournament play. The Orange and Blue have captured five in-season tournament titles, with the last coming at the Pepsi/Marist Classic in 1999-2000. Bucknell also won the Naismith-Holiday Inn Classic in Springfield, Mass., in 1988-89; the Albright Holiday Tournament in 1970-71 and the Hofstra Christmas Tournament in 1956-57.
holiday cheer
Never before has a Bucknell team awaken on Christmas morning with eight victories.
opponents laying bricks
During Bucknell's current three-game winning streak it has forced its opponents into 45-for-150 (.300) shooting from the field and 14-for-66 (.212) accuracy from 3-point range. The Bison have held seven of their nine opponents under 40% from the floor in 2005-06.
downtown threat
Junior center Chris McNaughton has been nearly automatic around the rim throughout his career, as evidenced by his stellar 63.4 career field-goal percentage. McNaughton has worked hard on increasing his shooting range, however, and he put that outside touch on display in last week's win over Saint Joseph's. McNaughton finished 5 of 9 from the field, but four of his five field goals came outside the paint, including his second career 3-pointer that kick-started the team's 16-0 first-half run. In the second half, after the Hawks scored nine straight points to pull within seven, McNaughton hit three straight jumpers in a span of 2:23 to push the lead back to double digits.
