Bucknell University Athletics
Bucknell, American Clash at Sojka Pavilion Wednesday in Battle for First Place in Patriot League
1/24/2012 7:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Jan. 24, 2012
WHAT: American (13-7, 4-1 PL) at Bucknell (15-6, 5-0 PL)
WHERE: Sojka Pavilion, Lewisburg, Pa.
WHEN: Wednesday, Jan. 25, 7 p.m. ET
TICKETS: 570-577-1000
LIVE WEBCAST: Bison Vision 
RADIO: Eagle 107 (WEGH 107.3 FM) and SportsJuice.com
LIVE STATS: GameTracker 
Complete Game Notes in PDF Format 
With a Win over American, Bucknell Would ...
• ... win its eighth straight game and improve to 16-6 on the season.
• ... get out to a 6-0 start in Patriot League play for the second straight year and for the fifth time as a member of the Patriot League.
• ... maintain sole possession of first place in the Patriot League and take a two-game lead over the Eagles.
• ... win its 16th straight game against Patriot League foes dating back to last season (including postseason).
• ... improve to 9-1 at home this season.
• ... improve to 93-30 all-time at Sojka Pavilion, 64-12 against Patriot League foes.
Headlines
• It's a battle for first place in the Patriot League on Wednesday night at Sojka Pavilion as 4-1 American visits 5-0 Bucknell. The Eagles can pull into a tie for the lead with a victory, while the Bison would move at least two games clear of every other team in the league if they can pull out a win.
• These are the Patriot League's two hottest teams. While the Bison have won seven games in a row, the Eagles have claimed three straight and five of their last six. American's only league loss came at Lehigh on Jan. 11.
• Bucknell has won seven straight games, 10 of its last 12, and 15 of its last 19. Since Dec. 1, 2010, Bucknell is 38-9.
• Bryan Cohen needs three points to reach 1,000 for his career. He would become the 35th player in program history to accomplish the feat, and the second this season. Mike Muscala logged his 1,000th point against Loyola on Dec. 28.
• Muscala is averaging 18.7 points over his last 11 games, and he has upped his season scoring average to 15.6, fifth-best in the Patriot League. Cameron Ayers (12.1), Joe Willman (10.3) and Bryson Johnson (9.3) are also top scorers.
• Muscala continues to lead the Bison in rebounding (9.2) and blocked shots (1.5). He leads the Patriot League in rebounding by a wide margin, and he has 10 double-doubles this season, the most in the league.
• The Bison were unanimously picked as the preseason favorite in the Patriot League by the league's head coaches and SIDs.
• The Bison returned four starters from last year's team that finished 25-9 overall and 13-1 in the Patriot League. Bucknell went on to capture the Patriot League Tournament title, but the 14th-seeded Bison were ousted by red-hot Connecticut, the eventual national champions, in their NCAA Tournament opener.
How to Get the Game
• The Bucknell-American game will not be televised, however a live webcast will be available on Bison Vision via BucknellBison.com as well as Patriot League All-Access via PatriotLeague.com (subscription rates apply).
• The game can be heard in the Susquehanna Valley on the radio on Eagle 107 (WEGH 107.3 FM), with Doug Birdsong and Terry Conrad describing the action. The pregame show begins 30 minutes before tip-off.
• The audio feed is available online free of charge via BucknellBison.com and SportsJuice.com.
• Live statistics are available on GameTracker at BucknellBison.com.
Bison Support Coaches vs. Cancer
• Coach Dave Paulsen and the Bucknell men's basketball program have been avid supporters of Coaches vs. Cancer and the American Cancer Society through the years, and once again this week the team is participating in activities to raise funds and awareness for the battle against cancer.
• Members of the Bison team and other volunteers are selling Coaches vs. Cancer merchandise Monday and Tuesday from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. and 5-7 p.m. in the Elaine Langone Center Mall, and again on Wednesday at Sojka Pavilion prior to the Bucknell-American game. The team will be selling tee shirts, lanyards, and Wall of Hope certificates, and donation cards will also be available. All proceeds go directly to the American Cancer Society.
• Coaches wearing sneakers with their suits has become an annual tradition across the country, and the Bucknell staff will be participating during the American game. Coach Paulsen is encouraging fans to take part by wearing sneakers to the game.
Bucknell vs. American
• Bucknell has an overall 29-20 lead in an all-time series with American that includes some historic dates. The very first meeting on Jan. 14, 1939 also happened to be the first game ever played in Davis Gym (AU won 38-33). Coincidentally, American was also the opponent for the very last game ever played in Davis Gym on Jan. 11, 2003 (a 63-52 Bison win).
• Bucknell has won 17 of 23 series meetings in Lewisburg, including nine out of 10 at Sojka Pavilion, but the Bison are just 4-6 at Bender Arena since American joined the Patriot League in 2001-02.
• As Patriot League rivals, Bucknell leads 14-8. The Bison defeated American eight straight times during one stretch, including victories in the 2005 and 2006 PL Tournament semifinals.
• After American swept the season series in 2008-09, the Bison returned the favor in each of the last two seasons and have won four straight over the Eagles.
• In the first meeting of last season, Mike Muscala recorded a career-high 33 points along with 10 rebounds and five blocked shots to lead Bucknell to a one-sided 75-60 win at Bender Arena. The Bison sprinted to a 20-4 lead and went up by as many as 22 in the second half. Joe Willman and Bryson Johnson added 12 points each for Bucknell, which shot 50.0% from the field and outscored American 20-5 at the foul line. Troy Brewer and Charles Hinkle scored 12 points each to lead American.
• In the rematch at Sojka Pavilion later in the year, Bucknell prevailed 66-60 behind Muscala's 21 points and 10 rebounds. The Eagles rallied from a double-digit deficit to take a 58-57 lead with 3:59 to play, but Johnson's 3-pointer ignited a 9-0 run and the Bison held on for the win. Brewer led AU with 13 points.
Patriot League Success
• The Bison are 193-92 (.677) in Patriot League regular-season games, the best record of any league team. They have finished at least .500 in PL play in 17 of 21 seasons.
• The victory at Lehigh last week made Bucknell the first Patriot League team to go 100 games over .500 in league play.
• Bucknell has won 15 straight games against Patriot League foes, 12 in the regular season and three in the Patriot League Tournament. Only Long Island has a longer active conference winning streak (21) among Division I teams.
• 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. The Bison have currently won 11 in a row at home against league foes.
NCAA Leaders, Consecutive Wins vs. Conference Opponents (through Monday's games)
21 - Long Island (NEC)
15 - Bucknell (Patriot)
15 - Kansas (Big 12)
11 - Kentucky (SEC)
Last Time Out
• After playing three of its first four league games on the road, Bucknell returned home on Saturday and walloped Holy Cross 75-41 before 3,983 fans at Sojka Pavilion. The 34-point victory was Bucknell's largest ever against the Crusaders, and the 41 points were the fewest Holy Cross has ever scored against the Bison.
• Bucknell held Holy Cross to 24.6% shooting (2-14 3FG), and the 41 points were the fewest allowed by the Bison since a 66-38 victory over Binghamton on Nov. 17, 2010.
• Bucknell also got off to a slow start offensively. The Bison led 30-19 at the half despite shooting just 32.1%, but in the second half they shot 57.1% overall, made 7 of 12 from 3-point range, and outscored Holy Cross 45-22.
• No Bison player saw more than 28 minutes of action and all 14 got in the game.
• Cameron Ayers led the way with 13 points on 5-for-7 shooting (2-2 3FG), while Mike Muscala recorded his 10th double-double of the season with 11 points and 11 rebounds. Bryan Cohen continued his strong play with 12 points, eight rebounds, three assists and two steals.
• Brian Fitzpatrick led a strong performance by the Bucknell bench with nine points and nine rebounds in 16 minutes. Bucknell's bench outscored Holy Cross' 35-5.
• Also of note among the reserves: Corey Starkey had three points, three rebounds, a steal, a blocked shot and an assist in seven minutes; Colin Klebon canned his first career 3-pointer; Ben Brackney went 2-for-2 from 3-point range, making him 12-for-12 on the season; and Enoch Andoh had a layup and an assist for four points.
• Bucknell outrebounded Holy Cross 50-31. It was the team's first 50-rebound game since it recorded 55 against Navy in 2008-09.
• The Bison tied a school record by having six different players make a 3-pointer (Cohen, Ayers, Klebon, Brackney, Bryson Johnson and Steven Kaspar). This was the 10th time in program history that has happened, and the first since a loss at Notre Dame in 2009-10.
Stats Worth Noting
• Bucknell is now 7-0 since point guard Ryan Hill joined the starting lineup.
• The Bison are 11-0 when leading at the half.
• Bucknell has shot 50% or better as a team in six of its last 12 games. The Bison have shot 50% eight times this season and are 8-0 in those games. Bucknell ranks 10th nationally in 3FG% at 40.6%.
• In the last six games, Bucknell is shooting 48.8% (41-84) from 3-point distance.
• Bucknell leads the Patriot League in both field goal percentage (.462) and field goal percentage defense (.397).
• During this current seven-game winning streak, Bison opponents are shooting 36.2% (134-370).
• The Bison rank 40th nationally (out of 338 teams) in fewest turnovers per game (12.0), but they only rank 277th in turnover margin (-2.0). Bucknell averages only 4.0 steals per game (332nd), but it has counterbalanced that with a good FG% defense and strong defensive rebounding.
• Bucknell has been dominant on the glass of late. After going -15 in rebound margin against Minnesota and Vanderbilt to start the season, the Bison are +150 since then and have outrebounded every opponent except Syracuse, Loyola and Lehigh. Bucknell's +6.5 rebound margin for the season is by far the best in the Patriot League and ranks 26th nationally.
• A big part of Bucknell's rebounding success has been limiting opponents' second chances. The Bison have held 15 of their 21 foes to eight or fewer offensive rebounds.
• Bucknell has been better at the free-throw line of late. After shooting just 68.5% at the line in their first 10 games, the Bison have made 79.7% (181-227) as a team in the last 11 contests. That includes a 21-for-21 performance in the win over Richmond and a 15-for-15 in the win at Lafayette. Bucknell ranked third in the nation in free-throw shooting last season at 78.8%, and after the slow start the team is up to 74.8% this season.
• Strangely, Bucknell has been a much better free-throw shooting team on the road this season. The Bison shoot 77.9% as a team in road games, but only 71.0% at Sojka Pavilion.
• Eight Bison have had at least one double-digit scoring game this season, and 10 of the 14 on the roster have done it at least once in his career.
• Kaspar's seven assists against West Alabama were the most by a Bison freshman since Abe Badmus had eight against Navy in 2003-04.
• Johnson's 15 3-pointers in the wins over West Alabama and Morehead State were a school record for most threes in consecutive games. Bucknell's 17 treys in the West Alabama game set a school record.
Double Your Pleasure
• Mike Muscala has 10 double-doubles this season, six shy of Boakai Lalugba's school record set in 2002-03.
• Muscala ranks 12th nationally in double-doubles and is just four shy of the national leader.
NCAA LEADERS, DOUBLE-DOUBLES
O.D. Anosike, Siena, 14
Arsalan Kazemi, Rice, 14
Rob Jones, Saint Mary's, 13
Kevin Jones, West Virginia, 13
Kyle O'Quinn, Norfolk State, 13
Thomas Robinson, Kansas, 13
Chris Gaston, Fordham, 12
Wendell McKines, New Mexico State, 11
Andre Roberson, Colorado, 11
Jamelle Hagins, Delaware, 11
Arnett Moultrie, Mississippi State, 11
Mike Muscala, Bucknell, 10
Mike Moser, UNLV, 10
Chris Cooper, Old Dominion 10
Anthony Davis, Kentucky, 10
Draymond Green, Michigan State, 10
Drew Gordon, New Mexico, 10
Herb Pope, Seton Hall, 10
Keith Rendleman, UNC WIlmington, 10
What's Next?
• Bucknell concludes the first round of Patriot League play on Saturday at Navy at 7 p.m.
• The Midshipmen are 3-15 overall and 0-6 in the Patriot League heading into Thursday night's game at Lehigh. That contest will be televised on CBS Sports Network.
