Bucknell University Athletics
Bucknell University
11-16
Old Dominion
16-13
Strong Finish Carries Old Dominion Past Bucknell, 65-55
2/23/2008 7:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Feb. 23, 2008
NORFOLK, Va. -- John Griffin scored 19 points and helped spark a spirited second-half rally for Bucknell, but Old Dominion finished the game on a 22-10 run over the last six minutes to defeat the Bison 65-55 in an O'Reilly ESPNU BracketBusters game Saturday night at Constant Convocation Center.
Gerald Lee had 20 points and seven rebounds for the Monarchs, who won their fifth straight and improved to 16-13. Frank Hassell and Brian Henderson added 10 each, for ODU which is 10-6 and in contention in the Colonial Athletic Association.
Griffin hit five 3-pointers in 11 tries for the Bison (11-16). Bucknell also received eight points and nine rebounds from Darren Mastropaolo, and eight points apiece from Justin Castleberry and G.W. Boon off the bench. Darryl Shazier, a native of nearby Newport News, had four points and a career-high five assists.
Bucknell trailed 38-29 early in the second half, but the Bison held Old Dominion to just one field goal in a span of 9:36 while rallying to take the lead. Griffin's jumper with 9:37 left pulled the Bison within three at 39-36, and after the Monarchs answered with four straight points, Bucknell rattled off nine in a row to take its first lead since 19-17.
With 6:20 left Mastropaolo scored and was fouled. He missed the free throw, but the Bison grabbed the rebound and Justin Castleberry made it a five-point possession with a 3-pointer. His first trey of the day gave the Bison a 45-43 lead with 6:15 to play.
But just as Bucknell surged ahead, Old Dominion responded. Darius James hit a short bank shot to tie it just after the Castleberry trey, igniting an 11-0 Monarchs run. Castleberry was called for a moving screen, then Lee scored in the lane as the shot clock expired to put ODU ahead 47-45.
Bucknell turned the ball over on its next two possessions, and Jonathan Adams and Hassell responded with buckets to make it 51-45. After Mastropaolo missed the front end of a 1-and-1, Adams scored inside and Lee made 1 of 2 free throws to restore the nine-point lead, 54-45 with 2:11 to play.
G.W. Boon's layup with 1:53 left ended Bucknell's 4:22 scoreless drought, but Old Dominion put it away from the free throw line. The Monarchs made 5 of 6 in a 12-second span to take a 12-point lead, 59-47 with 1:13 to play.
The Bison got off to a strong start, as baskets by Josh Linthicum and Shazier put them up 4-0, but Old Dominion scored 11 of the next 12 points, with back-to-back dunks by Sam Harris and Lee giving the home team an 11-5 lead.
Bucknell trailed 15-9 before Griffin's 3-pointer keyed a 7-0 run. Boon's short jumper put the Bison back in front 16-15, and the lead changed hands twice more before the Monarchs took control in the final four minutes of the half.
Griffin's third 3-pointer tied it at 22, but Old Dominion finished the half on a 9-2 run. Henderson hit a 3-pointer with 3:14 left, and Lee canned a short baseline hook shot with 36 seconds remaining to make it 31-24 at intermission.
Old Dominion outrebounded the Bison 19-13 and had a 14-0 edge in second-chance points in the first half. ODU finished with a 34-27 edge on the glass and outscored Bucknell 15-2 at the free-throw line.
Bucknell has two games remaining in the regular season, at Lehigh on Wednesday night at 7 p.m. and at Army next Saturday at 2:30 p.m.
