Bucknell University Athletics
Bucknell Women's Basketball Opens 2009 at Sojka Vs. Buffalo
12/31/2008 7:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Dec. 31, 2008
WHAT: Bucknell (5-5) vs. Buffalo (4-8) WHERE: Sojka Pavilion, Lewisburg, Pa. WHEN: Friday, Jan. 2, 7 p.m. RADIO: WVBU 90.5 FM, SportsJuice.com TV: None STREAMING VIDEO: Bison Vision LIVE STATISTICS: GameTracker Complete Bucknell-Buffalo Game Notes
With a Victory Over Buffalo, Bucknell Would...
- Win two straight at Sojka Pavilion. The Bison last defeated Wofford, 74-66, Dec. 19.
- Even the all-time series agains the Bulls at 4 games apiece.
- Snap a two-game losing streak against the Bulls. The Orange and Blue have dropped the last two meetings by an average of 15.5 points.
- Hold a 13-19 record for the first game in January (since the 1977-78 season).
About the Game
The Bucknell women's basketball team will attempt to open the 2009 calendar year with a win as it takes on the Buffalo Bulls for the eighth time in program history. The Bison narrowly escaped a Saint Francis (Pa.) comeback on Sunday, but they will try to repeat their success from their last home victory - a 74-66 decision over Wofford - to collect their sixth win of the season.
Bucknell-Buffalo Series
Despite beginning the series in 1991, Bucknell and Buffalo have met just seven times over the past 18 years. After losing the first two meetings, the Bison went on a three-game winning streak against the Bulls. They have been unable to collect a victory since that run ended in 2006. Bucknell is 1-2 against Buffalo at home.
Last Meeting - Jan. 2, 2008
- Bucknell fell to Buffalo, 78-65, at Alumni Arena last season. The Bison trailed their opponent by 18 points at halftime and pulled to within five with just under five minutes to play. The deficit proved to be too much, however, and the Bulls outscored Bucknell 11-3 in the final minutes.
- Amanda Brown led the Bison with 14 points, while Hope Foster and Kesha Champion each posted 12. Cosima Higham had a team-high five rebounds in the contest.
- Jessica Fortman and Stephanie Bennett finished with 21 and 19 points, respectively. Jamie Schiebner led the way for the Bulls with 11 rebounds and six assists. Fortman and Schiebner return to the Buffalo team for the 2008-09 season.
Quick Facts
Three Bison have scored in double figures in each of the last three games, with Amanda Brown, Cosima Higham and Morgan Wrightson completing the feat twice ... Trisha Krewson's 10 points at James Madison was a season high for the freshman ... Christina Chukwuedo followed a career-high six points versus Wofford with a career-best four assists two days later at James Madison ... After earning Patriot League Rookie of the Week, Morgan Wrightson posted her first 20-point game versus Wofford, shooting 8-for-10 from the free throw line ... Amanda Brown scored 22 points against the Towson Tigers Dec. 3, which is her highest total since she scored 22 points in the season-opening game at George Mason and 21 points at Yale four days later ... Joyce Novacek recorded her first double-double of the season when she earned 14 points and 11 rebounds at Loyola (Md.) ... Cosima Higham recorded two double-doubles in the Bison's first three games, with the most recent one coming at Fordham (16 points-14 rebounds) ... Bucknell has two of the top 21 scorers in program history on this year's team in Amanda Brown (14th) and Lauren Schober (21st).
History vs. Buffalo
- Before Amanda Brown led Bucknell with 14 points in the last meeting against Buffalo, the current senior dropped a 22 points on 9-of-15 shooting on the Bulls as a freshman in 2005, tying with Jacquie Seawright for the team high. Seawright added a team-best nine rebounds and five steals in the game.
- Lindsey Hollobaugh led Bison scorers in the 2006 contest with 18 points and seven rebounds in 40 minutes of court time. Despite the output, Buffalo's Rachelle Matthys recorded 15 points and four assists, while Stephanie Bennett added 13 points in the Bison's loss at Sojka Pavilion.
- Bucknell's most recent win can be credited largely to its defensive efficiency. In the December 2005 meeting, the Orange and Blue held the Bulls to 38 percent shooting, including just 10 percent shooting from behind the three-point arc. Buffalo was more successful from the field in the teams' last two games, however, both won by the Bulls. After improving their field goal percentage to 53 percent in 2006, Buffalo shot better than 61 percent in 2008.
- Most Recent Results:
About the Bulls
Buffalo is 4-8 entering the contest at Sojka Pavilion with wins against Youngstown State (66-42), Delaware (63-45), Niagara (87-62) and North Carolina Central (65-54). It also suffered a tough seven-point loss in overtime to Hofstra in early December. The matchup with Bucknell marks its final non-conference game as it takes on Ohio in its first Mid-American Conference test on Wednesday.
Most recently, the Bulls lost to Cleveland State on Monday, 75-48. Jamie Schiebner led Buffalo with 10 points, but the Bulls allowed the Vikings to shoot better than 48 percent (28-for-58) in the contest.
Last Time Out
After playing well but falling to James Madison two weeks ago, Bucknell defeated Saint Francis (Pa.), 61-56, in Loretto, Pa., on Sunday. The Bison took a five-point advantage into halftime before extending the lead to 20 points midway through the second half. The youthful team struggled to close out the game, however, and the Red Flash took advantage of the opening, finishing late layups and pushing the Bison to the final buzzer.
With 14 points, Morgan Wrightson led the team in scoring for the second time in her career, including seven quick points early in the second half. Cosima Higham also had a strong outing for the second consecutive game. After tallying 14 points at James Madison, the sophomore totaled 11 at Saint Francis (Pa.) and led the team in rebounds with nine.
Road Warriors
Bucknell has played just three of its last 10 games within the friendly confines of Sojka Pavilion. Despite the difficult schedule, the Bison are 4-3 on the road, including an 11-point victory over Colonial Athletic Association member George Mason in November and the most recent five-point win over Saint Francis (Pa.).
Connecting with the Community
The Bucknell women's basketball team has always understood the importance of community service, but with the players in the midst of the winter break from classes, the Bison are taking their involvement to another level. The Orange and Blue spent the afternoon playing basketball and other games with children at the Donald Heiter Community Center in Lewisburg on Tuesday. Players and coaches can also be found at the Ronald McDonald House in Danville on Jan. 3 when they plan to visit with families and help prepare a spaghetti dinner.
Long Distance Woes
After starting the season with the best three-point field goal percentage defense mark in the country at .167, Bucknell has faced some strong outside shooting teams. Wofford first made a dent in the Bison's defense by going 9-for-18 (.500) from behind the arc, followed by James Madison, which finished the game 10-for-24 (.417) from long range. On the flip side, Bucknell was unable to connect on any of its nine attempts from three-point range against the Dukes. The Orange and Blue bounced back at Saint Francis (Pa.), going 4-13 (.308) from behind the arc and holding the Red Flash to just 2-of-16 (.125).
Lowe's Senior CLASS Award
Lauren Schober was named a candidate for the Lowe's Senior CLASS Award on Friday. She is joined by 29 other Division I women's basketball players around the country exemplifying the “Four C's” - classroom, character, community and competition.
An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School, the award was launched during the 2001-02 season to honor the attributes of college basketball seniors who remain committed to their university and pursue the many rewards that a senior season and complete college education brings. The winner will be announced during the NCAA Women's Final Four.
Thousand Point Club
Bucknell women's basketball welcomed a new member to the 1,000-point club on Nov. 29. Since the game against the Loyola (Md.) Greyhounds, Amanda Brown reached 1,073 points in her career, making her the 18th player in program history to reach the milestone.
Hope Foster (1,256) and Kesha Champion (1,016) became the 16th and 17th members of the club last season. Foster, who is the ninth on the list of all-time scorers at Bucknell, crossed the threshold against Penn State. Champion, tied for 16th with former player Kim Delfs, achieved the milestone when she scored 13 points versus Holy Cross in the Patriot League Tournament. The two were the first teammates to reach 1,000 points in the same season since Desire Almind and Kate Franks in 2002-03.
Lauren Schober is the next Bison in the hunt for the 1,000-point mark. With 886 points, she is 114 points short of the milestone.
Turning the Tides
In the first three games of the season, the Bison were outrebounded by their opponents 41 rebounds per game to 36.3. The team started to turn things around in its home opener versus Drexel when it tied the Dragons with 43 boards. In the next five games, Bucknell pulled back on top in the category, claiming 42.6 rebounds per game compared to 34.6 for its opponents. That includes the matchup with Loyola (Md.) in which Bucknell outrebounded the Greyhounds 51-36.
Slides That Led to Success
The four-game losing skid earlier this season was the longest by a Bison team since the 2004-05 squad dropped six in a row. The slide came during Patriot League play and was finally stopped with a 66-60 win over American on Feb. 11. Before that, the 2001-02 team also experienced a five-game drought. The winless streak was not indicative of the team's final success, however, as the squad eventually went on to win the Patriot League Tournament and qualify for the program's first NCAA Tournament.
Quick to Three
The Orange and Blue wasted no time in stringing together three consecutive victories in the 2008-09 season. Although it earned victories in each of its first three games this year, Bucknell waited until the end of the season to accomplish the same feat last season. The 2007-08 Bison did not win at least three in a row until March when it defeated Army in the final regular-season game, before upsetting Army, American and Holy Cross in the Patriot League Tournament.
Plenty of Time
Two Bison are averaging at least 30 minutes through the first ten games of the season. Amanda Brown leads the duo, playing 37.7 minutes per game, including two games with 40 minutes. Her generous amount of time on the court ranks Brown second in the Patriot League for most minutes per game. She is followed by Joyce Novacek (31.0 mpg) and Lauren Schober (29.5 mpg). The high quantity of minutes is not new for Brown and Schober who have played a minimum of 40 minutes in a game a combined 18 times during their Bucknell careers.
20-Plus Points for Brown
Amanda Brown started the season with back-to-back games with more than 20 points. That scoring total makes her the first Bison to post at least 20 points in the first two games of the season since Molly Creamer in 2001. Creamer, who is the all-time leading scorer at Bucknell, tallied 26 versus Albany before dropping 27 to help upset Pittsburgh a few nights later. Brown posted her third performance with at least 20 points when she scored 22 versus Towson on Dec. 3.
NCAA Tournament Appearance
The Bison made their second trip in history to the NCAA Tournament last year. With their automatic bid from winning the Patriot League Tournament, they earned the opportunity to face North Carolina in a first-round matchup in Norfolk, Va. North Carolina came out on top, 85-50. In Bucknell's only previous appearance at the NCAA Tournament in 2002, the Bison were defeated by Baylor 80-56 in Waco, Texas.
Patriot League Preseason Poll
Bucknell was picked fifth with 53 points in the 2008-09 Patriot League Preseason Poll. The Bison were voted to finish first in the league prior to the 2007-08 season, then slipped to fifth before claiming the Patriot League Tournament championship. Bucknell has finished at or better than predicted seven times in the last 10 years. Holy Cross was picked first with 90 points. Lehigh (83 points), American (75) and Army (60) rounded out the top four.
Preseason Patriot League Poll Team (First-place votes) Pts. 1. Holy Cross (8) 90 2. Lehigh (6) 83 3. American (2) 75 4. Army 60 5. Bucknell 53 6. Lafayette 38 7. Navy 35 8. Colgate 14Mixing It Up
The Bison have mixed things up after using the same starting lineup in each of their first three games. Since then, opponents have seen new lineups in five of their last seven contests. The switches are not new to Bucknell fans, as the team used nine different sets of starters last year, including six different lineups in the season's first six games. That team tied for second on the list of most lineups used during a single season behind only the 1991-92 squad with 13. The 1981-82, 1983-84 and 1992-93 teams also had nine different starting lineups during the regular season.
Coaching Staff Additions
Bucknell welcomes two new assistant coaches to the program in 2008-09. Mandy Olley, a 2002 graduate of Old Dominion, joins the staff after a playing career that included four trips to the NCAA Tournament and a two-year turn as an assistant at Susquehanna University. Stephanie Marciano, a 2008 Yale graduate, ranks fifth all-time in assists for the Bulldogs, and brings valuable recent on-court experience to the coaching staff.
Small But Strong Senior Class
After having the largest senior class last season since 2001-02, the Bison are back to just two seniors on the roster in Amanda Brown and Lauren Schober. Bucknell graduated five seniors from the 2007-08 campaign – Kesha Champion, Kristina Collymore, Hope Foster, Ashton Sprouse and Andrea Wright.
90 PL Wins for Fedorjaka
With the Bison's final regular season victory over Army, head coach Kathy Fedorjaka earned her 90th career Patriot League win. Although that ties her for second-most league wins with Lehigh's Sue Troyan, Fedorjaka's Patriot League winning percentage at .616 is much better than Troyan's .529. Bill Gibbons of Holy Cross retains his commanding lead with 192 career Patriot League victories.
Patriot League “Growing Our Community”
In 2008, the Patriot League received a grant as part of the NCAA Division I Women's Basketball Grant Program that allows it to help its member schools further promote women's basketball during the 2008-09 academic year. The league is working with its eight member institutions to develop a number of activities and initiatives targeted to include youth organizations, senior groups, community and civic organizations and students and alumni.
The goal is to increase the home attendance for the entire 2009 Patriot League women's basketball campaign through a variety of promotions and engaging local organizations to attend and learn more about the Patriot league women's basketball programs, as well as expose individuals to the academic institutions.
Up Next
Bucknell kicks off a busy week after the meeting with Buffalo. The Bison will head to Howard for a 7 p.m. matchup on Monday, Jan. 5 before returning to Sojka Pavilion to play Cornell (Jan. 7) and Navy (Jan. 10).
