Bucknell University Athletics
Bucknell-Holy Cross Men's Basketball Rivalry Continues Sunday on CBS College Sports
1/14/2011 7:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Jan. 14, 2011
WHAT: Holy Cross (3-13, 2-0 PL) at Bucknell (11-7, 2-0 PL)
WHERE: Sojka Pavilion, Lewisburg, Pa.
WHEN: Sunday, Jan. 16, 2 p.m. ET
PROMOTIONS: ORANGE OUT | Dirk Sojka's Slam Dunk with Bison Basketball
TV: CBS College Sports 
RADIO: Eagle 107 (107.3 WEGH FM) and SportsJuice.com
LIVE STATS: GameTracker 
VIDEO PREVIEW: In the Herd
Complete Game Notes in PDF Format 
With a Win over Holy Cross, Bucknell Would ...
• ... win its sixth game in a row and its 10th in the last 11 outings.
• ... start 3-0 in Patriot League play for the first time since 2007-08.
• ... move into sole possession of first place in the Patriot League standings.
• ... improve to 5-1 at home this season.
• ... improve to 52-12 at Sojka Pavilion against Patriot League competition and 75-29 all-time at Sojka.
Hot Topics
• Bucknell and Holy Cross, who have been matched up in so many big games throughout the Patriot League's 20-year history, meet again on Sunday with sole possession of first place on the line. Both teams are off to 2-0 starts in league play, with the Bison winning road games over Navy and American, and Holy Cross beating Lafayette at home and Army on the road.
• Bucknell is in the midst of its best stretch of basketball in coach Dave Paulsen's three seasons, winning five straight and nine of its last 10 games. The Bison went 6-1 in December, then started off 2011 on a high note with a 62-61 win at Richmond, followed by the two Patriot League wins over Navy and American. Of the nine wins in this current hot streak, six have come on the road, including two against Atlantic 10 programs in Richmond and La Salle.
• The Bison are in the midst of their best 10-game stretch (10-1) since winning 14 straight games in 2006-07.
• The Bison have been strong offensively since the end of the final exam break in December, averaging 74.5 points while shooting 48.6% from the field, 46.8% from the 3-point stripe and 82.7% from the foul line over their last eight games. Bucknell has four players scoring in double figures and six averaging at least 8.0 points per game over that span, led by Mike Muscala at 17.5 ppg.
• Muscala has six 20-point games this season and continues to lead the team in scoring (15.2), rebounding (6.5) and blocked shots (1.4). He is coming off a career-best 33-point effort on Wednesday at American. Hot-shooting sophomore Bryson Johnson (10.2) and senior forward G.W. Boon (10.1) are also scoring in double figures, and seven Bison are scoring at least 5.9 points per game. Senior point guard Darryl Shazier is leading the Patriot League in assists (5.5) and now ranks No. 2 in the nation in assist-to-turnover ratio (3.81). Last Saturday, Shazier scored a career-high 28 points in the win over Navy.
• Johnson and junior guard Bryan Cohen have both been red hot from 3-point distance of late. In his last eight games, Cohen is 10-for-13 from the arc. He is now up to 48.5% on the season, which would be the No. 1 figure in the Patriot League except he falls just shy of the minimum to qualify. Johnson is 23-for-42 (.548) from long range in the last seven games, including a 7-for-12 showing at Boston College and a 5-for-7 effort at Richmond. Johnson leads the league and ranks 11th nationally in 3FG percentage on the season (.470).
• As a team, Bucknell is leading the Patriot League in all of the shooting categories: field-goal percentage (.453), 3-point percentage (.412) and free-throw percentage (.793). Among the national leaders, the Bison are third in FT% and 12th in 3FG%.
• Under the direction of first-year head coach Milan Brown, Holy Cross went 1-13 in non-conference play before starting the Patriot League schedule with two wins. The Crusaders did play a tough non-league slate while battling injuries, however, and they lost five games by three points or less.
• Devin Brown leads Holy Cross in scoring at 12.9 ppg, while Andrew Keister averages 11.8 ppg and a Patriot League-best 7.9 rpg. The Crusaders also feature one of the league's best 3-point shooters in Andrew Beinert (.439) and the league's No. 1 shot blocker in Eric Obeysekere (28).
• Bucknell and Holy Cross have played only one common opponent thus far: Boston College. The Eagles defeated the Crusaders 69-54 on Nov. 22, while the Bison lost at BC 84-80 on Dec. 22 in a game that came down to the final seconds.
• Holy Cross is the No. 1 rebounding team in the Patriot League, with a rebound margin of +2.8 on the season.
How to Get the Game
• The Bucknell-Holy Cross game will be televised nationally on CBS College Sports. The network is available through most cable operators (check local listings), as well as on DIRECTV Channel 613 and Dish Network Channel 152. Bob Socci will handle the play-by-play duties, with noted author and journalist John Feinstein serving as the color analyst.
• The game can be heard in the Susquehanna Valley on the radio on Eagle 107 (WEGH 107.3 FM), with Doug Birdsong and Ed Sigl on the call. The pregame show begins 30 minutes before tip-off.
• The audio feed is also available online free of charge via BucknellBison.com and SportsJuice.com.
• Live statistics are available on GameTracker via BucknellBison.com.
Bucknell vs. Holy Cross Series Notes
The Patriot League has deep-rooted rivalries based on geography (Lehigh-Lafayette) and military brethren (Army-Navy), but there has been no better basketball rivalry in the league than Bucknell-Holy Cross. Some of the highlights:
• The Bison and Crusaders have combined to win six of the last 10 Patriot League titles, and they are the only two league teams to have won in the postseason (Bucknell in the 2005 and 2006 NCAA Tournaments, Holy Cross in the 2005 NIT).
• These two teams have met in 13 of the 20 Patriot League Tournaments, including four times in the championship game. Bucknell defeated Holy Cross in the 2005 and 2006 title tilts, while the Crusaders topped the Bison in the final in 1993 and 2007.
• The Bison and Crusaders had never met until the formation of the Patriot League in 1990-91, but this will be the 54th meeting in 21 years.
• Bucknell leads the series 28-25. The road team has won five of the last eight, including Holy Cross' upset of the Bison in last year's Patriot League Tournament quarterfinals at Sojka Pavilion.
• Bucknell is 17-13 against Holy Cross in Lewisburg and 6-4 at Sojka Pavilion. One of those Sojka meetings was a 74-59 Bison win in the 2006 Patriot League championship game.
• Bucknell head coach Dave Paulsen is 3-4 against Holy Cross, including his Williams College team's 78-71 upset of the Crusaders at the Hart Center on Dec. 4, 2003.
• In last season's meeting at the Hart Center, Holy Cross parlayed a 55-point second half outburst into an 82-69 win over Bucknell. The game was tied at 27 at the half, and Bucknell had just gone ahead by four points five minutes into the second period when the Crusaders stunned the Bison with a 19-2 run to take command. Devin Brown made 10 of 14 shots, including 4 of 6 from behind the arc, en route to a career-high 29 points. R.J. Evans added 15 and Andrew Beinert 10 for the Crusaders. Darryl Shazier and Bryson Johnson led Bucknell with 16 points, while Mike Muscala added 14. Bucknell shot 53.7% from the field, but Holy Cross was almost as good with 52.0%.
• In the rematch at Sojka Pavilion on Valentine's Day, Shazier scored 20 of his then-career-high 27 points in the first half, helping the Bison to a 68-63 win. Joe Willman and Bryan Cohen scored 11 points each for the Bison, who built a 20-point second-half lead but had to hold on down the stretch as Holy Cross made a furious comeback. After scoring 29 points against the Bison earlier in the season, Brown scored 19 to lead Holy Cross in this one. Mike Cavataio added 17 and Evans 13 for the Crusaders, who shot just 38.9% and went 3-for-14 from 3-point range. Bucknell neutralized Holy Cross' interior game, as All-Patriot Leaguer Andrew Keister and frontcourt mate Eric Meister were held to a combined two points.
• The two teams met again in the Patriot League Tournament quarterfinals at Sojka Pavilion, with Bucknell the No. 2 seed and Holy Cross the No. 7 seed. The Crusaders pulled off the upset, winning 67-64 behind 20 points from Cavataio and 19 from Beinert. Shazier led the Bison with 19 points and Johnson tallied 16, but Bucknell was simply outshot. Holy Cross went 6-for-9 from the 3-point arc and 17-for-20 from the foul line while shooting 46.8% overall. At the other end the Bison were plagued by missed layups and foul shots (10-17 in the game). They went 10-for-27 from 3-point range, but just 12-for-32 inside the arc.
Patriot League Success
• The Bison are 177-91 (.660) in Patriot League regular-season games, the best record of any league team. They have finished at least .500 in PL play in 16 of 20 seasons.
• The Bison won a league-record 23 straight contests against conference foes from Feb. 23, 2005 to Jan. 12, 2007.
• Bucknell had a streak of 35 straight wins at home against conference opponents come to an end in 2008.
• Bucknell has an all-time record of 24-18 in 20 Patriot League Tournaments. Bucknell has beaten every team in the league at least once in the postseason. The Bison have reached the championship game six times, including wins in 2005 and 2006, and reached at least the semifinals in 15 of 20 years.
More from the American Game
• Mike Muscala enjoyed one of the best nights of his career, scoring a personal-best 33 points to go along with 10 rebounds and five blocked shots to lead Bucknell to the 75-60 win at Bender Arena.
• The Bison ran out to a 24-8 lead and had a double-digit advantage for the final 31:57 of the game.
• Muscala went 11-for-17 from the floor, 2-for-2 from 3-point range and 9-for-10 from the foul line. He also helped hold AU standout Stephen Lumpkins to seven points. It was Bucknell's first 30-point game since Justin Castleberry had 31 in a double-OT win over Old Dominion in 2008-09, and the 33 points by Muscala were the most by any Bison since Kevin Bettencourt scored 42 at Saint Francis (Pa.) in 2003-04.
• Bryan Cohen only attempted two shots and finished with five points and four assists, but he had a huge impact on the defensive end marking Patriot League scoring leader Vlad Moldoveanu, who was coming off a 39-point performance in a win over Lehigh. Moldoveanu finished with just seven points on 3-for-12 shooting.
• Bryson Johnson and Joe Willman scored 12 points apiece for the Bison, both going 4-for-6 from the field. Willman added eight rebounds, including a couple of big offensive boards that led to free throws in the second half as American was trying to rally.
• Bucknell shot an even 50.0% from the field (25-50) and went 5-for-13 from 3-point range. Muscala's two treys were his first two of the season, both coming late in the game in late-shot clock situations.
• Bucknell had another terrific showing at the free-throw line, finishing 20-for-23 (.870) on the night. That includes a perfect 14-for-14 showing in the second half.
Muscala Joins Rare 30-10 Club
• Mike Muscala on Wednesday turned in Bucknell's 28th 30-point, 10-rebound game since 1952-53 (when rebounding stats began to be kept). It was just the sixth 30-10 game since 1981, however, and the first since Boakai Lalugba had 34 points and 13 rebounds against George Washington in 2002-03.
• Muscala became only the second player in school history to produce at least 30 points, 10 rebounds and five blocked shots in a game. The other was Hall of Famer Mike Butts, who recorded 36 points, 18 rebounds and seven blocks in an overtime win over Duquesne in 1987-88.
Statistically Speaking
Some other notable numbers from Bucknell's first 18 games:
• Bucknell has a 263-to-206 assist-to-turnover ratio in 18 games, the best mark in the Patriot League. The Bison have had a negative ratio only four times all season, against Marquette, Loyola, Dartmouth and Richmond. Their 11.4 turnovers per game is the 22nd-best mark in Division I basketball.
• The Bison as a team are shooting 41.2% from long range, up from last season's 32.9% mark. Bucknell ranks 12th nationally in 3-point accuracy.
• Bucknell's 45.3% field-goal shooting is the best mark in the Patriot League, and the Bison rank No. 1 in the league and No. 3 in the nation in free-throw percentage at 78.6%.
• While the team's 3-point percentage is up, a lower percentage of Bucknell's total shots have come from beyond the 3-point arc. So far 30.2% of the team's attempts have come from long range, down from 34.7% last year and 35.0% in 2008-09.
• Bucknell has recorded an assist on 59.4% of its field goals this season. By comparison, last year the team was credited with an assist on only 51.6% of its baskets.
• Over its last 11 games, Bucknell is shooting 82.0% (196-239) from the free-throw line.
• Bucknell had scored 70 or more points in five straight games until that streak was broken in the 62-61 win at Richmond on Jan. 2. The last time a Bucknell team reached 70 in five consecutive games was all the way back in 1997-98, when it happened six straight times. The Bison started a new streak at Navy.
Who's Got Next?
• Bucknell's three-game homestand continues on Wednesday, when Lafayette visits Sojka Pavilion for a 7 p.m. contest. The Leopards, who have never won at Sojka, are 6-11 overall and 1-1 in the Patriot League heading into Saturday's home game against Navy.
