Bucknell University Athletics
Bison Women's Basketball Celebrates Senior Night in Regular-Season Finale Saturday vs. Navy
3/1/2013 7:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
March 1, 2013
| Bucknell (13-15, 4-8 PL) vs. Navy Midshipmen (18-10, 11-2 PL) Women's Basketball |
| WHERE: Lewisburg, Pa., Sojka Pavilion |
| WHEN: Saturday, March 2, 7 p.m. |
| RADIO: WVBU 90.5 FM and SportsJuice.com |
STREAMING VIDEO: Bison Vision  |
LIVE STATISTICS: GameTracker  |
COMPLETE GAME NOTES  |
ABOUT THE GAME
Before taking on Navy in its regular-season finale, Bucknell women's basketball will recognize Ashley Baxter, Alyssa Dunn, Lindsay Horbatuck, Felicia Mgbada and Rachel Voss on Senior Night. Fans can also win gift cards or a Bucknell Prize Pack by playing Basketball Bingo during the game. Tip off against the Midshipmen is set for approximately 7 p.m. at Sojka Pavilion.
Danny Will will call all the action on WVBU 90.5 FM and at SportsJuice.com. Live stats on GameTracker and streaming video on Bison Vision are also available at BucknellBison.com.
WITH A VICTORY AGAINST NAVY, BUCKNELL WOULD...
• Secure the No. 6 seed in the Patriot League Tournament.
• Collect its 14th win for the first time since the 2008-09 squad finished the season with a 16-12 record.
• Win its first game vs. the Midshipmen since Feb. 7, 2009 and give this year's senior class its first win against the Mids.
• End its regular season with an 8-6 record at home.
• Finish the Patriot League season at 5-9.
QUICK FACTS
• As of Feb. 28, Bucknell ranked 15th nationally in FG% defense (.343), 35th in 3FG% defense (.268), 38th in rebounding margin (+5.8), 88th in free throw percentage (.715) and 88th in scoring defense (57.7).
• Eight Bison were named to the Bucknell Dean's List for the fall semester, including Lindsay Horbatuck and Rachel Voss who both posted perfect grade-point averages of 4.0.
• Katherine Harris is averaging 8.0 points in two games vs. Holy Cross this year. The sophomore's average against the remainder of her 2013 Patriot League foes is 2.9 points per game.
• With its loss at Holy Cross on Feb. 23, Bucknell slipped below .500 (13-14) for the first time since being 1-2 in November.
• On Jan. 30 American was the first Bucknell opponent to score 60+ points at Sojka Pavilion since Longwood scored 60 on Dec. 15. Foes are averaging 51.1 ppg in the last eight games at Sojka.
• Shelby Romine became the 20th Bison in program history to record 1,000 career points on Feb. 9 vs. Army.
• Bucknell has 13 wins this season (13-15). The Bison totaled five all of last year (5-25).
• Felicia Mgbada finished her junior year ranked seventh at Bucknell in single-season blocked shots (39) and now ranks eighth. Audrey Dotson recently moved took over seventh with 40 rejections this winter.
• Aaron Roussell collected his first win as Bucknell head coach on Nov. 17 at Canisius. The Bison defeated the Golden Griffins 59-50 in Buffalo.
• Aaron Roussell was hired as Bucknell's ninth head coach in April 2012. Roussell spent eight years at the University of Chicago where he amassed a 161-50 record and led the Maroons to three Sweet Sixteens and one Elite Eight.
LAST MEETING WITH NAVY - FEB. 2, 2013
• Shooting struggles and turnovers were too much to overcome as Bucknell dropped a 21-point decision at Navy. The Bison finished with a .320 (16-50) field goal percentage for the game but were at just .200 (5-25) in the second half. They also had 21 turnovers, resulting in 16 points for the Midshipmen.
• Lindsay Horbatuck tallied her 13th career double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds. It was also her 30th career game with double-digit rebounding totals.
• In a battle between the top two rebounding teams in the Patriot League, Bucknell nipped Navy 35-34. Horbatuck's 11 boards led all players while Navy's Jade Geif and Alix Membreno each had six. Bucknell has outrebounded each of its last five opponents.
• After drawing to within four points of Navy midway through the second half, Bucknell's shooting came to a halt. The Bison failed to score in the final 7:28 of the game.
• Neither team made it to the free throw line often. The Bison finished the night at 3-for-4, and the Mids were 2-for-3. It was the fewest free throws made and attempted in a Bucknell game this season.
ABOUT THE MIDSHIPMEN
Navy enters Saturday's game with a Patriot League regular-season title on the line. At 18-10 overall and 11-2 in conference play, the Midshipmen would guarantee themselves the championship with a victory. Navy has won their last three since falling 48-40 to Army for a second time this season. The latest win in the Mids streak came against Lehigh on Wednesday by the low score of 49-34.
Navy leads the Patriot League in scoring defense (44.2), field goal percentage defense (.319), rebounding margin (+5.0) and 3-point field goals made (7.1) this winter. Individually, Jade Geif ranks second in rebounding (8.7) and offensive rebounds (3.5), second only to Bucknell's Lindsay Horbatuck. Geif was named the Patriot League Player of the Week on Monday. It was her fourth honor of the season and her third in the last five weeks.
HISTORY VS. NAVY
• Bucknell leads Navy in the all-time series, 27-24. The Midshipmen have won each of the last nine meetings for their longest winning streak in series history, but the Bison were the victors in each of the previous nine.
• In their most recent winning streak, the Bison were outscoring the Mids by more than 18 points. The tides have turned, however, and in Navy's nine wins since then, Bucknell is being outscored by 13.2 points per game. The Mids have also won the last three meetings at Sojka Pavilion by an average of 7.3 points.
• Navy's 50-49 win over Bucknell on Jan. 28, 2012 was the first one-point decision in series history.
• Bucknell is 13-9 all-time when playing in Lewisburg. The last three contests have gone Navy's way, however, and the Bison have failed to score 60 points in any of those losses.
• Bucknell's largest margin of victory at Sojka Pavilion, where the Bison and the Mids began playing in 2003, is 20 points. That was reached in back-to-back meetings in 2006 (W, 74-54) and 2007 (W, 67-47). Bucknell's largest margin of defeat at Sojka was 15 points in a 61-46 loss on Feb. 6, 2010.
• Bucknell is 24-4 against Navy when it scores at least 60 points. The Bison are just 3-20 in the series when scoring fewer than 60. The last time Bucknell scored 60 points against Navy was Feb. 9, 2009. The Bison won that contest 66-54. It was also their last win in the series.
• Recent Results:
Feb. 5, 2011 Navy, 66-45
March 9, 2011 Navy, 55-41 (PL Tournament Semifinals)
Jan. 28, 2012 Navy, 50-49
Feb. 25, 2012 Navy, 60-51
Feb. 2, 2013 Navy, 60-41
LAST TIME OUT
• Feb. 27, 2013: American 54, Bucknell 43 (Bender Arena)
• Shelby Romine scored all of her 11 points in the second half and the Bison outscored the Eagles 28-24 as a team after halftime, but the late push could not keep them from the 11-point road loss. Bucknell has now lost 10 in a row to American.
• The Bison bounced back from a .192 field goal percentage in the first half to finish the game at .300 (15-50).
• Bucknell outrebounded its 21st opponent of the year, tying the single-season program record. The Bison won the battle of the boards 39-33. Lindsay Horbatuck led all players with 11 rebounds, improving her season total to 283, the third-highest total in program history.
• Romine shot 0-for-2 from the floor in the first half and finished the game at 5-for-9.
• Bucknell outscored American in the paint (20-18), on the fast break (6-4) and off the bench (15-13). Felicia Mgbada proved to be the Bison's top reserve, finishing with eight points and eight rebounds.
• American's Geleisa George led all players with 17 points on 6-for-15 shooting. She was also 5-for-8 at the free throw line, including 4-for-6 in the second half.
PATRIOT LEAGUE TOURNAMENT SCENARIOS
Few postseason plans are guaranteed heading into the final regular-season finale. Navy and Army have secured the top two seeds, but who will be first is still up for grabs. American, Holy Cross and Lehigh have guaranteed themselves the third through fifth spots, but like the military academies, which team will be which seed is still to be determined. Below are the Patriot League Tournament scenarios for the Bison. The quarterfinal round is set for March 7 with games to be played at the site of the higher seed.
Bucknell will be the No. 6 seed if ...
• Bucknell wins vs. Navy. The outcomes of all other games are irrelevant.
• Bucknell loses, Lafayette loses, Colgate loses and Holy Cross gets the No. 3 seed over American.
Bucknell will be the No. 7 seed if ...
• Bucknell loses, Lafayette wins and Colgate loses.
• Bucknell loses, Lafayette loses, Colgate loses and American gets the No. 3 seed over Holy Cross.
Bucknell will be the No. 8 seed if ...
• Bucknell loses, Lafayette wins and Colgate wins.
• Bucknell loses, Lafayette loses and Colgate wins.
SENIOR NIGHT
Bucknell will recognize seniors Ashley Baxter, Alyssa Dunn, Lindsay Horbatuck, Felicia Mgbada and Rachel Voss prior to Saturday's game. The quintet helped Bucknell to its first-ever Patriot League Tournament berth in Lewisburg as sophomores and this year is just two rebounds shy of breaking the single-season program record in rebounds. Together they have accounted for multiple selections to the Patriot League Academic Honor Roll, Bucknell Dean's List and Academic All-Patriot League Team for their success in the classroom as well.
CENTURY MARKS
Shelby Romine recorded the 100th steal of her career a week ago at Holy Cross and now has 101 in nearly three complete seasons. The junior is looking to hit the 100 mark in another area as well. Romine needs just one more assist to hit 100 for the season. It would be the second time in her career she dished out at least 100 assists in a single campaign. As a freshman, Romine finished with 101, hitting the century mark in the final game of the season at Navy in the Patriot League Tournament semifinals.
PLAYING IN MARCH
• Bucknell is 20-31 all-time in games played in March.
• The Bison have a 5-3 home record in March contests having won each of the last five. They are also 2-0 at Sojka Pavilion in March.
• The last March game played in Lewisburg actually took place at Davis Gym. Bucknell hosted Army in the Patriot League Tournament quarterfinals on March 3, 2011, winning 54-40.
• It isn't very often that Bucknell plays a regular-season game in March. The Bison are 3-4 in those contests.
BEHIND THE ARC
For the first time this season, Bucknell was unable to hit a 3-pointer when it traveled to American on Feb. 27. The last time the Bison did not make a 3-point field goal in a game was vs. Holy Cross on Feb. 18, 2012. Bucknell enters Saturday's game with 95 made 3-pointers this winter, tying for 10th on the program's single-season ledger.
FREE THROW SHOOTING VS. THE MIDS
• Bucknell and Navy combined to shoot just 5-for-7 from the free throw line on Feb. 2. Bucknell's 3-for-4 were the fewest free throws made and attempted since finishing 0-for-2 against Lehigh at the Patriot League Tournament on March 1, 2012. The Midshipmen's 2-for-3 outing on Feb. 2 marked the fewest made by a Bison opponent since Providence shot 2-for-7 from the line Dec. 29, 2003.
• Bucknell's limited trips to the free throw line against Navy on Feb. 2 was not new. The Bison were 1-for-4 on March 9, 2011. By also shooting 0-for-6 on Feb. 6, 2010, it was the first time in Sojka Pavilion history Bucknell had come up empty at the line.
• Bucknell has now lost nine straight to Navy. Prior to that streak, the Bison had won nine consecutive games against the Mids. During their current losing streak, the Bison are averaging 5.9 free throws on 9.7 attempts. In its nine wins leading up to the current drought, Bucknell made 13.9 free throws per game on 19.0 attempts.
PERFECTION AT THE LINE
Bucknell went perfect at the free throw line on Feb. 20 vs. Lehigh, shooting 6-for-6. It was just the second time in Sojka Pavilion's 10-year history that the Bison finished a game at 100 percent. The first came against American on Feb. 7, 2006 when the Bison were 8-for-8 from the line.
The last time Bucknell shot 100 percent from the line at any venue was Feb. 7, 2009 when it went 12-for-12 at Navy.
FIRST 14 GAMES VS. LAST 14 GAMES
• Bucknell has been doing its best to make a late push in recent contests. The Bison outscored their first 14 opponents in the second half/overtime just three times. In the last 14, Bucknell has outscored opponents after halftime in eight games, including each of the last two.
• Through the first 14 games of the season, Bucknell had a +1.5 scoring margin and an 8-6 record. The last 14 contests have seen those numbers drop to a -14.9 scoring margin and a 5-9 record.
• Through the first 14 games of the season, Bucknell had a +11.2 rebounding margin, while that stands at +0.5 in the last 14 games.
• Bucknell has 88 blocked shots on the season, 44 in each half of the campaign.
KEEPING THEM OFF THE BOARDS - REVISED
Bucknell has outrebounded 21 of its 28 opponents this season, and 13 straight from Nov. 17 to Jan. 8. Its 13 straight games of outrebounding foes was the longest streak in program history. Next on the list are the 1978-79, 2000-01 and 2010-11 squads, which each had a season-best eight straight games of beating their opponents on the glass.
The 2009-10 team outrebounded 21 total opponents, while the 1978-79 squad bested 13 of its 15 opponents on the boards.
LOW SCORING TOTALS
With its 61-40 loss to Navy on Feb. 2, Bucknell suffered its first game with less than 50 points since scoring just 47 against Lehigh in the Patriot League Tournament last March. The Bison totaled 35 points against Army in their next outing, its fewest since scoring 30 against West Virginia on Dec. 28, 2011. The Bison scored 50 or fewer points in 13 games last season.
BISON IN THE NATIONAL RANKINGS
As of Feb. 28, Bucknell had maintained its position the national statistical rankings. The Bison rank 15th in field goal percentage defense (.343) and personal fouls per game (13.0) and 35th in 3-point field goal percentage defense (.268). Bucknell is also in the top 100 in rebounding margin (38th, +5.8), free throw percentage (88th, .715) and scoring defense (88th, 57.7). Individually Lindsay Horbatuck ranked 38th nationally in rebounding (10.1).
TEAM RECORDS
• After grabbing 42 rebounds in the Feb. 20 game vs. Lehigh, the Bison moved into 10th on the program season record list. They have since improved to 1,185 on the season, ranking second all-time and just one away from tying the school record of 1,186 set in 2007-08.
• Bucknell is fourth in 3-point field goals attempted with 375 this year. The Bison are also tied for 10th in 3-point field goals made (95). The last time a team was added to that list was in 2009-10 (seventh, 106).
• If the season ended today, Bucknell would rank fourth in program history in scoring defense (57.7) and eighth in rebounding average (42.3). That scoring defense mark is the best since the 2008-09 squad finished its season ranked fourth after allowing 57.6 points per game to opponents.
PATRIOT LEAGUE REBOUNDING LEADERS
Lindsay Horbatuck enters Saturday's contest vs. Navy, the last game of the regular season, still in the lead in Patriot League rebounding. The senior is averaging 9.6 boards in 13 conference games. The last Bison to finish the season as the Patriot League rebounding leader was Desire Almind. Almind's 13.4 boards per game during the 2003-04 campaign is still the highest single-season average in league history.
Including Almind, Bucknell has had three players claim four Patriot League rebounding titles. Shannon McGowan led the league with 9.8 rebounds per game in 1994-95 and Juliet McGee was the top rebounder in 1991-92 (9.4 rpg) and 1992-93 (9.1 rpg).
RECORD WATCH
• Shelby Romine moved up to fifth on the Bucknell 3-point field goal list when she shot 3-for-6 from behind the line vs. Colgate on Jan. 16. The junior now has 124 career 3-pointers. She is also fifth on the 3-point field goals attempted list with 373.
• Romine cracked the program's top-10 list in single-season 3-pointers as well on Feb. 16 vs. Lafayette. Now ranking ninth, she has 44 successful attempts, needing two more to pass Molly Creamer (45 in 2000-01) and three more to tie match her own total of 47 set during her freshman campaign for seventh.
• Romine has been doing plenty to help her teammates score. She now has 292 career assists, ranking eighth in program history.
• With 763, Lindsay Horbatuck is now seventh in career rebounds at Bucknell. Her 16 boards vs. American on Jan. 30 made her the 10th Bison to hit the 700 plateau. Horbatuck, who is also third in single-season rebounds with 283, is averaging 10.1 boards this winter.
SOJKA PAVILION RECORD WATCH
Just one more guaranteed home game remains on the schedule and several Bison have made their way up the facility record lists.
• Shelby Romine moved up the rankings in 3-point field goals made (52) and attempted (156) and is now third on both lists. The junior is also third in field goals attempted (531), tied for third in assists (136), fourth in free throws made (77) and fifth in games started (38). After her 20-point performance on Feb. 20 vs. Lehigh, she also cracked the list in scoring, ranking fifth with 431 points.
• Lindsay Horbatuck began her senior season ranked fifth in rebounds. She is now up to second with 373. Hope Foster (2004-08) holds the record at 399. Horbatuck is also fifth in Sojka Pavilion history in steals (63).
• Felicia Mgbada ranks third all-time at Sojka Pavilion in blocked shots with 43. Three more will move her past former teammate Cosima Higham, but Hope Foster is a distant first with 178.
• Rachel Voss is tied for third with Lauren Schober for games played (51), while Alyssa Dunn, Lindsay Horbatuck and Felicia Mgbada are tied for fifth with Lindsey Hollobaugh (2003-07) and Joyce Novacek (2007-11) with 50 appearances apiece. The record currently stands at 52, held by Kesha Champion and Hope Foster.
LOOKING AHEAD
When Bucknell returns to the court next it will be for the Patriot League Tournament. The Bison are still waiting to learn their fate, however, as no seeds will be determined until Saturday's games are played. The quarterfinals are set for March 7 with each game being played at the site of the higher seed.
