Bucknell University Athletics
Bucknell Men's Basketball Closes Out First Half of League Play with Key Home Game vs. Resurgent Army Saturday Night
1/25/2007 7:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Jan. 25, 2007
WHAT: Bucknell (11-8, 5-1) vs. Army (13-8, 3-3)
WHERE: Sojka Pavilion, Lewisburg, Pa.
WHEN: Saturday, January 27, 2007, 7 p.m.
RADIO: Eagle 107 and SportsJuice.com
LIVE ONLINE VIDEO: Patriot League All-Access
PROMOTIONS: Mardi Gras Night/Young Alumni Night
COMPLETE PRESS NOTES
Bucknell wraps up a three-game homestand Saturday night against a much-improved Army team that has already nearly tripled its win total from all of last season. The Bison have won three straight and enter the weekend alone in second place in the Patriot League standings, one game behind unbeaten Holy Cross, which played host to Lehigh on Friday night. Bucknell turned in one of its most complete efforts of the season in Tuesday's 62-44 rout of Lehigh. In that one the Bison were sharp at both ends of the floor, particularly on defense where they held the league's top scoring and shooting team coming in to only 31.5% accuracy from the field (23.8% from 3-point distance). Frontcourt standouts Donald Brown (15 pts., 7 reb.) and Chris McNaughton (15 pts., 11 reb.) both had big games against Lehigh and rank 1-2 on the squad in both scoring and rebounding. Army had won three straight league games before falling to Lafayette 76-68 on the road on Wednesday. The Black Knights, who are 9-1 at home but 2-7 on the road, enter the weekend in fourth place, a game behind Lehigh. Army is led by the high-scoring guard tandem of Jarell Brown (17.4 ppg) and Matt Bell (15.8 ppg), both of whom rank in the top five in the Patriot League in scoring. The Black Knights lead the PL in both FG% (.461) and FG% defense (.395), and they shoot a league-best 42.4% from 3-point range.
with a victory over army, bucknell would ...
-- ... win its season-high fourth game in a row.
-- ... earn its 12th win of the year and move four games over .500 for the first time this season.
-- ... win its 13th straight game against the Black Knights.
-- ... win its 11th straight home game against the Black Knights.
-- ... win its 31st straight home game against Patriot League opponents.
-- ... improve to 44-9 all-time at Sojka Pavilion.
-- ... improve to 31-4 in Patriot League play since the start of the 2004-05 season.
bucknell vs. army
The Bison hold a 34-14 lead in a series that dates back to 1929. They currently have a 12-game series winning streak, with Army's last win coming at West Point on Feb. 14, 2001. The Black Knights have never won at Sojka Pavilion (0-5) since it opened in 2003 and have lost 10 straight in Lewisburg. The Cadets' last win here came on Jan. 29, 1997 at Davis Gym. Army won the first 10 series showdowns, nine of them coming prior to 1966. As Patriot League rivals, Bucknell has won 33 of 37 meetings.
bucknell vs. army last season
The Bison swept three games from the Black Knights last season, the last --- On Feb. 1 at Christl Arena, Charles Lee did it all for the Bison, logging 19 points, five rebounds, five assists and six steals in a 67-54 win. Jarell Brown scored 25 points for Army, which led by 10 points in the first half and trailed by only one midway through the second.
-- On Feb. 25 at Sojka Pavilion, it was an emotional Senior Night as the Bison paid tribute to Lee, Kevin Bettencourt, Tarik Viaer-McClymont and Holland Mack. Lee (18) and Bettencourt (13) then combined for 31 points in Bucknell's 70-47 win, wrapping up the first 14-0 season in league history. Matt Bell paced Army with 16 points, while Marshall Jackson added 10.
-- On Mar. 3 at Sojka Pavilion, Chris McNaughton scored a game-high 14 points and Bettencourt and Lee added 13 and 12, respectively, to lead Bucknell to a 59-47 win in the first round of the Patriot League Tournament. Army gave the Bison all they could handle, however. There were nine lead changes and five ties in the first 17 minutes, and Bucknell led by only four with 10 minutes to play before taking control with a 14-0 run.
last time out
Bucknell's well-tested winning formula paid dividends again on Tuesday night, as the Bison used a strong inside game, clutch 3-point shooting and swealtering defense to derail Lehigh 62-44 (see p. 33 for complete recap and boxscore). The Bison closed the first half on a 28-11 run and held a commanding 37-21 halftime advantage. With the exception of one possession in the second half, they led by double figures the rest of the way.
inside the colgate boxscore
-- Chris McNaughton posted his first double-double in more than a year with 15 points and 11 rebounds. His previous double-double came in a win at Syracuse in November 2005. McNaughton was a force in the first half, when he logged 12 points and seven rebounds to help the Bison get going. He had a pair of dunks and a crowd-pleasing 3-pointer from the left wing.
-- Donald Brown continued his fine play with 15 points, seven rebounds, three assists and three steals. He scored 12 of his 15 points in the second half, including five straight after Lehigh had cut the lead to nine with a 7-0 run to start the half.
-- After struggling from long range in the early part of league play, the Bison connected on eight 3-pointers, including six in 10 attempts in the first half. Jason Vegotsky hit three triples, while Abe Badmus and John Griffin hit two each.
-- Defensively, Bucknell shut down Lehigh's top two scorers in Jose Olivero and Kyle Neptune. Olivero was held to nine points, seven below his average, on 4-for-15 shooting. Neptune, a 46.2% 3-point shooter coming in, missed his first 10 shots and finished 1-for-12 (0-for-6 from the arc) for three points.
-- After committing 40 turnovers in its previous two games, the Bison produced an outstanding 14-to-8 assist-to-turnover ratio.
-- The 44 points were Bucknell's fewest allowed against Lehigh since a 56-42 win in Bethlehem on Feb. 8, 1984.
-- The Bison finished with a 37-30 rebounding edge. Over the last three games, Bucknell has outrebounded its opponents 111-74 (+37).
roarin' 30's
Since the start of the 2002-03 season, Bucknell has now held an opponent to 39 points or less nine times and 49 points or less 29 times.
dee-fense!
The Bison are coming off their two best defensive showings of the season in wins over Colgate and Lehigh. In those two games Bucknell yielded a total of 80 points on 29-for-99 (.293) shooting from the floor and 5-for-35 (.143) shooting from 3-point range. The Bison have now retaken the Patriot League lead and rank 21st nationally in scoring defense, allowing 59.2 ppg.
controlling the key
Bucknell has outscored its opponents 150-90 in the paint through six Patriot League games, with most of the damage coming from the post trio of Chris McNaughton, Donald Brown and Darren Mastropaolo.
PL Opponent BU Paint Opp. Paint Navy 30 8 American 20 10 Holy Cross 22 22 Lafayette 26 16 Colgate 26 12 Lehigh 26 22 Total 150 90
tyree's time
Freshman guard Stephen Tyree is beginning to make an impact after playing in only five of the first 16 games of the season. With the Bison off to slow starts in two recent games against Lafayette and Colgate, Tyree was inserted to give them an energy boost, and he did just that both times. Against Lafayette he played seven minutes, grabbed three offensive rebounds and dished an assist. His court time doubled to 14 minutes against Colgate, and Tyree responded with his first career field goal on an acrobatic tip-in as well as four rebounds, two assists and a steal. Tyree played 10 minutes against Lehigh, and while he didn't figure statistically, he was outstanding defensively against the Mountain Hawks' talented guards.
success when getting to the line
Bucknell has shot more free throws than its opponent 10 times this season and is 9-1 in those games. In Patriot League play, the Bison have outscored their four opponents 92-58 from the stripe.
mcnaughton one of top-scoring centers in bucknell history
Senior Chris McNaughton recently moved into the top 10 on Bucknell's all-time scoring list, and he also ranks third in school history in scoring at the center position. He is poised to move past Mike Butts into second place. Center Years Points 1. Bob Barry 1976-80 1,809 2. Mike Butts 1985-89 1,355 3. Chris McNaughton 2003-pres. 1,351 4. Dan Bowen 1997-2000 1,193 5. Hal Danzig 1956-59 1,163
defending the arc
One area of concern for the Bison had been defending the 3-point line, but they had one of their all-time great efforts in that department in last Saturday's win over Colgate, when the Raiders went 0-for-14 from the arc. Prior to that game, Bucknell's Patriot League opponents had made 34 treys in four games and were shooting 40.0% from long range. Last time out against Lehigh, the Bison did another solid job, holding the Mountain Hawks to 5-for-21 accuracy from 3-point distance.
making amends
Early in the season Bucknell lost two games in which it had double-digit leads, first on opening night at Albany and then at home against Wake Forest. The Bison atoned for those two lost chances by overcoming big deficits against Saint Francis (Pa.), Cornell and Lafayette. On Nov. 29, the Bison trailed the Red Flash by 15 in the first half, by 10 at halftime and by eight with 2:55 left. At Cornell on Dec. 16, Bucknell trailed by 17 in the first half, by 13 at halftime and by eight with 4:45 left. At Lafayette on Jan. 17, the Bison fell behind 13-3 and trailed by as many as eight in the second half before winning 67-61.
patriot league success
No Patriot League team has won more regular-season conference games than Bucknell since the start of league play in 1990-91. The Bison carry an impressive 148-68 (.685) conference ledger and have posted 14 winning or even conference records in 16 years. The Bison won a league-record 23 straight contests against conference foes from Feb. 23, 2005 to Jan. 12, 2007. Bucknell has an active streak of 30 straight wins at home against conference opponents, with their last home league loss coming on March 2, 2003 against Colgate.
home, sweet home
After playing only two home games in November and December (against Wake Forest and Northern Iowa), the Bison are certainly glad to have some home contests on the horizon. Bucknell was 14-1 at home last season and is 30-4 in Sojka Pavilion since the start of the 2004-05 season. The Bison had a 13-game overall home winning streak end with the loss to Wake Forest on Nov. 14, but they still have a 30-game run against league foes. All told, the Bison are 43-9 (.827) in Sojka Pavilion since debuting in the new facility on Jan. 15, 2003. After Saturday's Army game, Bucknell will have three more regular-season home contests prior to the Patriot League Tournament, which will be entirely contested at higher seeds' home floors this season.
what can brown do for you?
Senior co-captain Donald Brown is enjoying one of the best stretches of his career and is making a serious charge at All-Patriot League consideration at season's end. Twelve games ago coach Pat Flannery made a lineup change, moving Brown from the "3" to the "4" spot, and over that span he is averaging 14.3 ppg while shooting 63.2% (67-106) from the field. He is averaging 14.5 ppg in Patriot League play, 7th in the league.
patriot league all-access is here ...
The eight Patriot League institutions and College Sports Television Online will air more than 100 men's and women's basketball games live on the Internet as part of the new Patriot League All-Access package. Nearly every intraleague contest, including Bucknell's men's and women's games, will be available through video streaming on www.PatriotLeague.com or www.BucknellBison.com. The Patriot League All-Access package is available for $6.95 per month. The monthly fee allows a subscriber to watch any Patriot League basketball games that are part of the package.
... so is sirius satellite radio
This season SIRIUS Satellite Radio is featuring a Patriot League "Game of the Week." The package consists of 10 regular-season games, seven of which include Bucknell, and all seven Patriot League Tournament games. Remaining games featuring Bucknell are Jan. 30 at Colgate, Feb. 6 at American, Feb. 9 vs. Holy Cross and Feb. 21 at Lehigh.
milestone watch
-- Chris McNaughton how has 1,351 points, and he moved into ninth place on Bucknell's all-time scoring list with 15 points Tuesday against Lehigh. McNaughton needs four more to equal Mike Butts for eighth place.
-- Abe Badmus now ranks second on Bucknell's career steals list (197). He is 89 thefts shy of the school record set by Mike Bright (286) from 1989-93. Badmus has also moved into fifth place on the school chart with 341 career assists. He needs 58 more to catch Cal Puriefoy for fourth place.
-- Against Texas Tech, John Griffin became the 12th player in school history to record 100 career 3-pointers (he now has 110, which is tied for 10th-most in school history).
-- Donald Brown recorded his 100th career steal against Lehigh and needs 26 to crack the top 10 on Bucknell's career list.
who's got next?
After playing three straight games at home, the Bison now face a tough stretch of three in a row on the road. The swing begins on Tuesday night at Colgate's Cotterell Court at 7 p.m. It will be the second meeting between Bucknell and Colgate in a 10-day span. The Bison defeated the Raiders 50-36 last Saturday.
bracketbusters pairings to be announced next week
The pairings for the ESPNU BracketBusters television games will be announced live on ESPNU at 6 p.m. (ET) on Monday, Jan. 29. The remainder of the pairings (non-televised games) will be distributed on Tuesday, Jan. 30. Bucknell is scheduled to host a BracketBusters game on Saturday, Feb. 17 at Sojka Pavilion.
