Bucknell University Athletics
Bucknell, Holy Cross Men's Basketball Rivalry Visits Worcester Saturday Afternoon
2/10/2006 7:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Feb. 10, 2006
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The Hart Center has been sold out for weeks in anticipation of Saturday's clash between Patriot League powers Bucknell and Holy Cross. The Bison come into the contest with a 10-game winning streak and a perfect conference record, while the Crusaders are in third place, two and a half games behind Bucknell and a game back of second-place Lehigh. Bucknell's last trip to Worcester was a memorable one, as the Bison defeated Holy Cross 61-57 in the Patriot League championship game last March. The Hart Center is also the site of Bucknell's most recent conference loss. Last Feb. 23, the Crusaders scored a 69-54 victory over the Bison. Since then, the Orange & Blue have won 14 straight games against Patriot League foes. The most recent victim was American, which bowed 74-57 on Wednesday at Sojka Pavilion. The Bison shot 57.8% in that game and made 8 of 13 from 3-point range. Holy Cross won an 88-38 laugher over Army on Wednesday and has won three straight games and nine of its last 12. Reigning PL Player of the Year Kevin Hamilton leads the team and ranks second in the league in scoring at 17.8 ppg. Keith Simmons (13.0) and Torey Thomas (11.9) also score in double figures, and that star trio accounts for 63.4% of the team's scoring. Bucknell and Holy Cross had never met until the Patriot League was formed in 1990-91. Since then, the two teams have played 40 times, with the Bison winning 22. Nine of those meetings have come in the Patriot League Tournament, including the 1993 and 2005 championship games.
with a victory over holy cross, bucknell would ...
• ... go to 20-3, which would equal the best 23-game start in school history (1983-84).
• ... equal Fordham's 1990-91 record for best Patriot League start at 11-0.
• ... win its 11th straight game, equaling the longest winning streak since 1919.
• ... win its 15th straight game against Patriot League foes (including PL Tournament).
• ... remain in sole possession of first place in the Patriot League.
• ... clinch a top-two seed and home court for the first two rounds of the Patriot League Tournament.
• ... record the eighth 20-win season in program history.
• ... win its sixth straight road game, which would be the longest road streak since 1974-75.
last time out: winning streak hits 10 after 74-57 win over american
Bucknell made it 10 wins in a row Wednesday night when it sprinted past American 74-57 to complete a season sweep of the Eagles. The Bison took the lead for good with a 14-1 run midway through the first half. Chris McNaughton, who scored a game-high 16 points, had eight points in that decisive run. Bucknell led 40-26 at the half, and while American managed to hang around with some hot outside shooting (8-for-15 from the arc), the Bison led by at least 11 poitns the entire second half.
inside the boxscore
Charles Lee had another solid all-around game with 15 points, six rebounds, three steals and two assists ... Lee scored six of the team's first eight points of the night, and later he collected his 500th career rebound ... Chris McNaughton's 16 points came on 8-for-12 shooting ... Kevin Bettencourt (11 points) and Jason Vegostsky (10) also reached double figures ... Vegotsky had a perfect shooting night (3-3 FG, 2-2 3FG, 2-2 FT) and he also had two assists, a steal and a blocked shot in a career-high 15 minutes of action ... Bucknell outrebounded American 28-16 ... AU's 16 rebounds was a Sojka Pavilion-record low ... the Bison corralled more offensive rebounds (12) than the Eagles had defensive rebounds (8) ... Bucknell had a positive assist-to-turnover ratio (15-12) for the ninth time this season ... Bucknell shot 68.8% in the second half and 57.8% overall ... American joined Villanova as the only visiting teams to shoot better than 40% from the field at Sojka Pavilion this season ... AU's 53.3 3FG% was the highest of any Bison opponent this year.
the first bucknell-holy cross meeting
• Jan. 14, 2006 at Sojka Pavilion: Chris McNaughton scored 10 of his 15 points in a dominant first half, leading Bucknell to a 56-42 victory over Holy Cross in the first meeting between the two teams since the 2005 Patriot League championship game. The Bison held the Crusaders to only three first-half field goals and led 34-14 at intermission. Holy Cross rallied within eight points in the second half, but Bucknell held the visitors at bay with some solid free-throw shooting down the stretch. Kevin Hamilton led all scorers with 18 points for Holy Cross. He was held to just a pair of free throws in the first half, but he scored 12 points in a 17-6 run to open the second half. Holy Cross, which had been averaging 85.0 ppg in league play coming in, was held to 29.3% shooting and the Bison forced 18 turnovers.
more from bucknell-holy cross, part 1
The Bison shot 60.0% in the first half en route to the 20-point halftime lead ... they finished the night at 43.6% ... Bucknell made 20 of its first 24 free throws before missing its final three in the last 30 seconds ... Donald Brown continued his fine play off the bench with six points, four rebounds and two assists ... Abe Badmus had eight rebounds, one shy of his personal best ... Kevin Hamilton, Keith Simmons and Torey Thomas combined for 40 of Holy Cross' 42 points.
championship rematch
Saturday's game is a rematch of the 2005 Patriot League championship game, won by Bucknell 61-57 at the Hart Center. The victory gave the Bison their first-ever Patriot League title, and paved the way for Bucknell's historic upset of Kansas in the NCAA Tournament.
bison, crusaders have long tournament history
Last year's championship game was the ninth meeting between Bucknell and Holy Cross in 15 Patriot League Tournaments, making it the most-played tournament rivalry. The Bison now have a 5-4 lead in those tournament showdowns, with plenty on the line in each of them.
• 1992 Semifinals (Bucknell 86, Holy Cross 77): The rivalry began to heat up, as the Bison erased a 6-point halftime deficit and outscored the Crusaders 46-31 in the second half. Bill Courtney scored 26 points and PL Player of the Year Patrick King had 25.
• 1993 Championship (Holy Cross 98, Bucknell 73): Bucknell clinched the No. 1 seed with a 112-99 win on the last day of the regular season, but Holy Cross returned the favor with a 25-point blowout in the championship game in Davis Gym. Roger Breslin led the Crusaders with 17 points and 10 assists.
• 1994 Quarterfinals (Holy Cross 96, Bucknell 91): In Charlie Woollum's last game as Bucknell's head coach, Holy Cross used a 30-11 run in the second half to take command. The late Gordon Hamilton scored 37 points for the Crusaders, nullifying 24 from Bison point guard Sekou Hamer.
• 1998 Quarterfinals (Bucknell 60, Holy Cross 56): Down 10-0 right out of the gates, the Bison rallied behind 15 points each from J.R. Holden and Martin Gilliard. The duo combined to go 6-for-6 from the foul line in the final 46 seconds to ice the win.
• 1999 Quarterfinals (Bucknell 76, Holy Cross 52): Bucknell's second-largest win in the series was not as easy as it looks on the stat sheet. The Bison trailed 37-36 at the half but outscored Holy Cross 40-15 in the second period. Brian Muckle scored 15 points on 5-for-5 shooting for the Bison.
• 2002 Semifinals (Holy Cross 64, Bucknell 57): The teams alternated the first 11 baskets in a second half that featured 14 lead changes and seven ties. A controversial technical foul call against Bucknell with HC leading by two in the final 30 seconds of the game helped propel the Crusaders, who were led by Tim Szatko's 19 points and 12 rebounds.
• 2003 Semifinals (Holy Cross 75, Bucknell 50): Kevin Hamilton scored 15 points to lead Holy Cross, which jumped out to a 15-5 lead and led by 17 at the half. Boakai Lalugba, a 1,300-point scorer, tallied 21 for Bucknell in his final game.
• 2004 Quarterfinals (Bucknell 66, Holy Cross 60): Charles Lee and Chris McNaughton combined for 39 points on 14-for-18 shooting for the Bison, who overcame 28 turnovers by shooting 61.8% from the field.
• 2005 Championship (Bucknell 61, Holy Cross 57): Bucknell raced to a 33-13 first-half lead but had to hold off a furious Holy Cross rally. Chris McNaughton led the Bison with 17 points on 7 of 8 shooting, while Kevin Bettencourt scored 13, including two clinching free throws with 0:08 left.
bracketbusters times, tv listings announced
ESPN has announced the start times and network schedule for the Feb. 18 "BracketBusters presented by eBay" showcase. Bucknell has been paired with No. 25 Northern Iowa in a noon (EST) game on ESPN2. The Bison and Panthers nearly met in the second round of the NCAA Tournament last season. Just prior to Bucknell's upset of Kansas, UNI lost a down-to-the-wire 57-52 decision to Wisconsin.
hot starts
Bucknell has become only the second Patriot League team to start a season 10-0.
Best Starts in Patriot League play Fordham, 1990-91 Started 11-0 Finished 11-1 Bucknell, 2005-06 Started 10-0 Finished ?-? Navy, 1997-98 Started 9-0 Finished 10-2 Holy Cross, 1992-93 Started 7-0 Finished 12-2 Bucknell, 1994-95 Started 7-0 Finished 11-3 Lafayette, 2003-04 Started 7-0 Finished 9-5
in good company
Bucknell is one of 18 Division I men's basketball teams to have a winning percentage of .800 or better, and the Bison have the 9th-best record in the nation (through Thursday's games). The list:
1. Duke 22-1 .957 2. Connecticut 21-1 .955 3. George Washington 19-1 .950 4. Memphis 21-2 .913 5. Villanova 18-2 .900 6. Florida 20-3 .870 7. Illinois 20-3 .870 Texas 20-3 .870 9. BUCKNELL 19-3 .864 Gonzaga 19-3 .864
league unbeatens
Bucknell is also one of only six remaining Division I teams that are unbeaten in their conference entering the weekend.
Team Conference Record Bucknell Patriot League 10-0 Duke ACC 10-0 George Washington A-10 9-0 Gonzaga WCC 8-0 Memphis C-USA 7-0 Penn Ivy League 4-0
streaking
Bucknell's current 10-game winning streak is tied for second-longest in the nation (through Thursday's games). George Washington has won 11 games in a row, while Bucknell, Connecticut, Gonzaga and Memphis have all won 10 straight games.
streaking, part 2
Bucknell's current 10-game winning streak is the second-longest longest in Pat Flannery's 12-year tenure as head coach, trailing only last year's 11-game run, which equaled the team's longest of the "modern" era. The longest overall winning streak in school history is 17 games (1902-04), and the longest within a season is 12 games (1907-08).
Longest Bucknell Winning Streaks Under Pat Flannery (Since 1994-95): 11 12/4/04 - 1/23/05 10 1/7/06 - pres. 8 1/13/96 - 2/7/96 7 1/30/04 - 2/22/04 5 1/11/97 - 1/25/97 5 1/9/99 - 1/23/99 5 1/31/99 - 2/17/99 5 1/15/00 - 1/26/00 5 2/9/00 - 2/23/00Longest Winning Streaks in Bucknell History (broken up by) 17 3/1/1902 - 2/19/1904 (vs. Allegheny) 15 2/5/1901 - 2/11/1902 (at Princeton) 14 1/10/1908 - 1/27/1909 (at State College) 13 3/9/1906 - 3/9/1907 (at Harrisburg Collegians) 13 2/15/1918 - 2/8/1919 (at Lehigh) 11 2/6/1920 - 1/13/1921 (at Temple) 11 2/1/1993 - 3/6/1993 (vs. Holy Cross) 11 12/4/2004 - 1/23/05 (at American) 10 2/16/1919 - 12/20/1919 (at Syracuse) 10 1/14/1983 - 2/8/1983 (at Lafayette) 10 1/7/2006 - pres. 9 3/3/1956 - 12/28/1956 (vs. West Virginia Tech) 9 2/19/1958 - 12/10/1958 (at Cornell) 9 1/7/1974 - 1/25/1974 (Rutgers) 9 1/21/1987 - 2/21/1987 (at Lafayette)
mcnaughton named to academic all-district team
On Wednesday, Bison center Chris McNaughton was named to the ESPN the Magazine Academic All-District Team. An electrical engineering major with a 3.27 cumulative GPA, McNaughton is now eligible for the national Academic All-America ballot.
mcnaughton, bettencourt, lee are team's top three in two big stats
Not only are Chris McNaughton, Kevin Bettencourt and Charles Lee Bucknell's top three scorers, but the trio also posted the team's top three grade-point averages during the recently completed fall semester. All three posted GPAs of at least 3.4. McNaughton, an electrical engineering major, is the reigning Patriot League Scholar-Athlete of the Year. Lee is a management major, while Bettencourt majors in American history.
balanced attack
The Bison are off to an 19-3, 10-0 start, and they have done it with terrific defense and a deep, balanced rotation. Despite its gaudy record, Bucknell has had only one Patriot League Player of the Week all season (Kevin Bettencourt on Nov. 28), and they have no players ranked in the top eight in scoring in Patriot League play. Only three times all year have the Bison had the same high scorer in back-to-back games.
3 x 1,000
With a jumper with 15:45 to play in the Jan. 25 win at Lehigh, junior center Chris McNaughton became the 31st 1,000-point scorer in Bucknell basketball history. McNaughton joins teammate Kevin Bettencourt (1,425) on that list, while senior Charles Lee (967) could soon be joining them. If Lee makes it to 1,000, it would be the first time since 1992 that three Bison teammates had all reached that milestone. That year, seniors Patrick King and Bill Courtney, along with junior Mike Bright, had all topped 1,000 points.
patriot league foes find points hard to come by
In 10 Patriot League games thus far in 2006, Bucknell has allowed only 49.0 ppg and has held teams to 34.9% shooting. That continues a trend of stellar defense dating back to last season, when the Bison allowed 34, 35 and 57 points in three Patriot League Tournament wins. In their last 13 games against PL foes, the Bison have allowed an average of only 47.4 ppg. Bucknell has allowed less than 70 points in each of its last 30 games against league competition and less than 60 points in each of its last 14.
bison rank third in nation in scoring defense ...
Through Thursday's games, Bucknell ranks third nationally in scoring defense, allowing only 55.4 points per game.
National Leaders, Scoring Defense: 1. Air Force 54.0 2. Princeton 54.5 3. Bucknell 55.4 4 Richmond 55.5 5. Southern Illinois 55.6 6. Illinois 56.6 7. Washington State 57.5 8. Boston University 57.7 9. Delaware State 57.9 10. Northern Iowa 58.0
