Bucknell University Athletics
Bison Men's Basketball Back Home Saturday to Face Princeton
11/27/2013 4:40:00 PM | Men's Basketball
What: Princeton (4-1) at Bucknell (3-3)
Where: Sojka Pavilion, Lewisburg, Pa.
When: Saturday, Nov. 30, 2013, 7 p.m.
Internet Video: Bison Vision on the Patriot League Network (free)
Radio: Eagle 107 (107.3 WEGH)
Internet Radio: BucknellBison.com
Live Statistics: BucknellBison.com
Tickets: 570-577-1000 or buy online
With a Win over Princeton, Bucknell Would ...
• ... improve to 4-3 on the season.
• ... improve to 2-0 at home this season and extend its home winning streak to nine.
• ... improve to 114-33 all-time at Sojka Pavilion.
• ... improve to 5-11 all-time against Princeton.
Headlines
• Bucknell ran into a hot-shooting Mount St. Mary's team on Tuesday and was dealt a 69-64 loss at Knott Arena. Now the Bison get to play a home game for the first time in two weeks and for just the second time this season as Princeton visits Sojka Pavilion on Saturday night. The 3-3 Bison host a 4-1 Tigers squad that has won three in a row, including a 71-66 home victory over George Mason on Tuesday,
• Bucknell cooled off a bit at Mount St. Mary's after shooting the lights out in the previous game against Albany. The Bison made 14 of 21 3-point tries in the win at Albany, which upped their national 3FG percentage ranking into the top 5. At Mount St. Mary's the Bison shot 46.3% overall and made 5 of 13 from the arc, but they were hampered by a rash of missed shots around the rim.
• Senior Cameron Ayers continues to lead the team in scoring at 15.2 ppg, even after being held to five points on Tuesday at Mount St. Mary's.
• Brian Fitzpatrick continues to make the most of his increased role this season. After serving as Mike Muscala's backup for the last two years, Fitzpatrick is averaging 11.5 ppg and shooting 61.7% from the field. He scored a career-high 18 points on 8-for-12 shooting at Mount St. Mary's
• Bucknell used only two different starting lineups all of last season. The Bison have already had three different starting fives this year and have yet to use the same starting lineup in consecutive games.
• This is a “new-look” Bison squad, as three standout players from last year's NCAA Tournament team have graduated (Mike Muscala, Bryson Johnson, Joe Willman). Three Bucknell players made their first career starts at Stanford (Brian Fitzpatrick, Dom Hoffman, Ben Brackney), Ryan Frazier started for the first time in his career at Penn State, and Chris Hass did the same against Saint Francis.
• Bucknell returns two starters and 11 lettermen from last year's squad that won a school-record 28 games, captured Patriot League regular-season and tournament titles, and advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the sixth time in program history.
• Since dropping a 70-67 decision at Butler on Nov. 16, Princeton has posted consecutive wins over Lafayette (81-80 OT), Rice (70-56) and George Mason (71-66). In just his second game of the season after returning from an injury, guard T.J. Bray logged 18 points, six rebounds, 10 assists and no turnovers in Tuesday's home win over George Mason. Bray is one of five Tigers averaging in double figures for the season, joining Denton Koon (12.6), Hans Brase (11.6), Ben Hazel (10.6) and Will Barrett (10.2).
How to Get the Game
• The Bucknell-Princeton game will not be televised, however a free internet webcast will be available on Bison Vision on the Patriot League Network. Links can be found at BucknellBison.com and PatriotLeague.tv.
• The game can be heard in the Susquehanna Valley on the radio on Eagle 107 (WEGH 107.3 FM), with Doug Birdsong calling the action. The pregame show begins 30 minutes before tip-off.
• The audio feed is available online free of charge via BucknellBison.com.
• Live stats can be accessed at BucknellBison.com.
Bucknell vs. Princeton Series Notes
• The Bison are 4-11 all-time against Princeton, with the most recent meeting a 79-67 Tigers victory at Jadwin Gym last December. That was one of only six losses suffered by the Bison all year.
• In last year's game, Denton Koon and Ian Hummer scored 18 points apiece to lead hot-shooting Princeton, whose 79 points were the most allowed by Bucknell all season long. Mike Muscala logged 17 points and 11 rebounds for the Bison, who saw their eight-game winning streak against Ivy League opposition come to an end.
• Two years ago Bucknell and Princeton met in Sojka Pavilion as part of the TicketCity Legends Classic, and Bucknell prevailed 62-56 behind 25 points and 12 rebounds from Muscala. That snapped a five-game series losing streak and was Bucknell's first win over Princeton since a 74-62 overtime decision at Jadwin Gym in December 1996, a game in which the Bison rallied from 19 points down. That loss was one of only four all season for the Tigers (the others were Indiana, North Carolina and California).
• These two teams first met on Feb. 12, 1902. Princeton won a 19-18 thriller on its home floor. That was one of only two losses in a 12-2 season for Bucknell.
Bucknell vs. The Ivy League
• Bucknell is 47-45 (.511) all-time against the Ivy League, including a 3-1 mark last year. The Bison have played 48 games against Cornell, but only 44 combined against the other seven Ivy teams. In addition to its 25-23 record against Cornell, Bucknell is 4-2 against Yale, 3-1 vs. Brown, 3-4 vs. Penn, 4-1 vs. Dartmouth, 4-11 vs. Princeton, 3-2 vs. Columbia and 1-1 vs. Harvard.
• The Bison are 9-2 against the Ivy League since the start of the 2010-11 season. Bucknell will play Columbia later this season at Sojka Pavilion.
Last Time Out
• Mount St. Mary's shot 68.0% in the first half to build a 38-30 halftime lead, then fought off several Bucknell charges in the second half to win 69-64. The Bison cut a 12-point deficit to two on a Chris Hass 3-pointer with 1:44 left, but the Mountaineers regained control by scoring five straight points from the free-throw line surrounding a Bucknell missed layup and turnover.
• Brian Fitzpatrick enjoyed the best offensive night of his career with 18 points on 8-for-12 shooting. Fitzpatrick also connected on his third 3-pointer in the last two games, after not hitting a three since his freshman year at Penn in 2009-10.
• On a night when starting guards Cameron Ayers (2-7) and Steven Kaspar (2-9) struggled for the first time all season, Bucknell received plenty of bench production. Hass (10 points), John Azzinaro (9), Dom Hoffman (9) and Ryan Hill (7) combined for 35 points on 13-for-19 shooting. That group also snagged 17 rebounds. Hass's 10 points tied his career high, while Azzinaro's nine points set a new personal best. Hass also recorded five rebounds and three assists in 27 minutes.
• Bucknell shot 46.3% for the game, despite a number of missed attempts on driving layups. After the Bison made 14 of 21 from the arc in the previous game against Albany, Mount St. Mary's defended the 3-point shot well, limiting Bucknell to five treys in 13 attempts.
Worth Noting
• Steven Kaspar (12, 25), Ben Brackney (13, 16) and Brian Fitzpatrick (10, 13) all set career scoring highs in the opener against Stanford, and then re-set them in game No. 2 at Penn State.
• Bucknell now has four players scoring in double figures — Cameron Ayers, Kaspar, Fitzpatrick and Brackney — and Dom Hoffman is five points shy of that mark (55 points in six games).
• Bucknell has struggled to get to the free-throw line in recent games. After going 24-31 at the line in the win at Penn State, the Bison are a combined 20-for-26 in the four games since then. That includes the Saint Francis game on Nov. 16 when the Bison did not attempt a single free throw. They rank last in the nation teams in free-throw attempts (11.0 per game) on the season.
• Bucknell has typically ranked among the very best in the nation in fewest turnovers under coach Dave Paulsen, and this year has been no different. The Bison are averaging only 9.7 turnovers per game to rank 21st nationally.
• Bucknell's center combo of Fitzpatrick and Hoffman are shooting a combined 63.2% from the field (55-87) while averaging 20.7 ppg.
• Through six games the Bison are shooting 50.6% from the field, 47.1% from 3-point range and 78.8% from the foul line. They rank second to Colgate in the Patriot League in FG% and 3FG% and rank third nationally in 3FG%.
NCAA Leaders, 3FG%
Team 3FG%
1. Indiana State .515
2. Colgate .489
3. BUCKNELL .471
4. Oklahoma State .470
5. North Dakota .469
Who's Got Next?
• Bucknell's tough non-league slate continues on Wednesday when the Bison make their first-ever trip to Kent State. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. at Memorial Athletic and Convocation Center.
• The Golden Flashes just hosted a subregional of the Coaches vs. Cancer tournament and swept Western Carolina, South Carolina Upstate and Niagara. Kent State is now 6-1 on the season, including an impressive road win over Temple on Nov. 11. The Golden Flashes host Youngstown State on Wednesday and Kennesaw State on Sunday before the Bison get to town.
• Bucknell and Kent State met for the first time last season, and the Bison won 76-60 at Sojka Pavilion. Mike Muscala notched 27 points and Ryan Frazier had a career-high 13 for the Bison, who outscored KSU 44-29 in the second half.
