Bucknell University
11-7, 2-0
American
11-6, 1-1
Muscala's Offense, Cohen's Defense Lead Bison Men to Convincing 75-60 Win at American
1/12/2011 7:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Jan. 12, 2011
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Sophomore center Mike Muscala had a career night with 33 points, 10 rebounds and five blocked shots, and reigning Patriot League Defensive Player of the Year Bryan Cohen shut down league scoring leader Vlad Moldoveanu to lead Bucknell to a 75-60 rout of American Wednesday night at Bender Arena.
American (11-6, 1-1) and Bucknell (11-7, 2-0) were picked to finish 1-2 in the Patriot League Preseason Poll, and both teams came in on four-game winning streaks. The Bison took control early, sprinting to a 24-8 lead, en route to their ninth win in 10 games.
Muscala scored 24 points in a monster second half, one more than his previous career high, and recorded his third career double-double. Muscala finished 11-for-17 from the floor and helped put the game away with two late-shot clock 3-pointers in the closing minutes.
The Bison came out with some unusual matchups in its man-to-man defense in an effort to get Cohen on Moldoveanu, the league scoring leader who earned a national player of the week honor after his 39-point performance against Lehigh on Saturday. Power forward Joe Willman started out on American's point guard, with Bryson Johnson guarding 6-5 wing Troy Brewer.
Cohen, with some help from freshman Cameron Ayers, harassed Moldoveanu all night and held the 6-9 all-star to seven points on 3-for-12 shooting. Moldoveanu did not attempt a free throw and went 0-for-7 in a scoreless second half.
The matchups seemed effective from the outset, as American started out 4-for-17 from the floor while the Bison raced to 16-point lead. Willman was the offensive catalyst in the opening minutes, as he scored all the points in an 8-0 run that put Bucknell up 12-4. Later, G.W. Boon, subbing in for Willman, knocked down a pair of 3-pointers as the run stretched out to 20-4 and the lead to 24-8.
A couple of treys by Charles Hinkle sparked an 8-2 American run, but then Johnson scored eight points in a little over two minutes to help stretch the lead back to 16. He knocked down a contested 3-pointer from the right side, made two free throws after being sent to the floor on a jumper, and then drove baseline for an old-fashioned 3-point play.
Cohen's free throw with 1:15 left in the half extended the lead to 37-21 before American scored the final four points of the half to make it a 37-25 game at intermission.
The Bison came up with stops on American's first six second-half possessions, and points from Muscala, Johnson and Cohen upped the lead to 18 at 43-25. The Eagles tried to claw back, using 3-point plays by Lumpkins and Hendra and a 3-pointer by Brewer to close within 51-40 with 11:45 to play.
But then Muscala took the game over, scoring 12 straight Bucknell points in one three-minute stretch. Perhaps the biggest play of the game came with 10:15 to play and the Bison up 53-40. Cohen slipped a sweet bounce pass to Muscala, who threw down a thunderous dunk while drawing the fourth foul on Stephen Lumpkins, the Eagles second-leading scorer and top rebounder. Muscala completed the 3-point play to make it 56-40, and soon after he scored on a jumper just inside the arc, converted another 3-point play and then scored on an inside move to the basket.
American made a brief surge on two quick layups by Simon McCormack to pull within 63-49, but then Willman twice got fouled on offensive rebounds and made all four free throws. Inside four minutes to play, Muscala drilled 3-pointers -- his first two of the year -- after the Bison drained the shot clock. The second of those gave them their largest lead of 22 points at 75-53.
American scored the final seven points of the night with the reserves in the game, as Bucknell committed three of their eight turnovers in that span.
Muscala produced Bucknell's first 30-point game since Justin Castleberry had 31 in a double-overtime win over Old Dominion in 2008-09. It was also the highest-scoring game by a Bucknell player since Kevin Bettencourt scored 42 at Saint Francis (Pa.) in 2003-04.
Johnson and Willman both finished with 12 points, while Darryl Shazier had seven assists.
Bucknell outrebounded American 34-28 and shot an even 50 percent from the floor. The Bison came into the game as the No. 3 free-throw shooting team in the nation, and they went 14-for-14 in the second half and 20-for-23 overall.
Brewer and Hinkle led American with 12 points each.
Bucknell kicks off a three-game homestand Sunday against Holy Cross. The 2 p.m. contest will be televised live on CBS College Sports. An "Orange Out" has been declared at Sojka Pavilion, as fans are encouraged to wear orange to the game.
