Bucknell University Athletics
Bucknell Men's Basketball Team Set to Embark on Tour of Ireland, England
5/18/2005 8:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
May 18, 2005
LEWISBURG, Pa. - The Bucknell men's basketball team, fresh off its terrific postseason run, returns to the hardwood next week as it begins a four-game, 11-day tour through England and Ireland. Head coach Pat Flannery will bring all 13 student-athletes and his entire coaching staff from the record-setting 2004-05 squad on the trip, which begins with an evening flight to Shannon, Ireland next Tuesday.
Per NCAA rules, a program may take one overseas trip every four years, and this will mark the third time Flannery has taken his Bison to Europe. In 2000 the team visited Italy and Croatia, and in 1996 Bucknell went to Denmark and Sweden.
"Every time we do a trip like this I get so excited, because it seems like in every conversation among the alums that I have coached, they always bring up the trip," said Flannery. "These guys going with us this year are all fun to be around, and they seem to genuinely like each other. A trip like this opens up a culture that none of us have really experienced. We're going to see a lot of castles and beautiful country, and hopefully we'll meet some new people. There are a lot of Bucknell alums over there."
Bucknell's first game in Ireland will be on Thursday, May 26 against the Limerick Basketball Club at Limerick University. Three days later the Bison will suit up against the Killester Basketball Club in Dublin. Both of these Irish clubs' top teams compete in the ESB Superleague. Limerick was 11-10 and Killester 15-8 last season.
On May 30, the team will fly to London, and the following day Bucknell will take on the London Select All-Stars. The team's final game of the tour will be June 2 against London United at Brunel University in Uxbridge.
"We are going to give the guys who didn't get a whole lot of playing time this season, who are still very good players, equal time," said Flannery, who hopes to play each Bison player about 20 minutes per game.
When not in action, the Bucknell contingent will do plenty of sightseeing in both Ireland and England, including planned stops at the famous Blarney Castle, Waterford Crystal Factory, Buckingham Palace and Oxford University.
The Bison finished 23-10 in 2004-05 and defeated Holy Cross for the Patriot League title. Bucknell then scored a stunning 64-63 upset of Kansas in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, marking the first NCAA win in school and league history.
