Bucknell University Athletics
Bison Close Out Non-League Play at Siena on Sunday
12/27/2014 3:55:00 PM | Men's Basketball
What: Bucknell (5-7) at Siena (3-7)
Where: Times Union Center, Albany, N.Y.
When: Sunday, Dec. 28, 2014, 2 p.m.
TV: Time Warner Cable Sports in Central, N.Y.
Webcast: SienaSaints.com
Radio: The Valley 100.9 FM
Internet Radio: BucknellBison.com
Live Statistics: SienaSaints.com
With a Win over Siena, Bucknell Would ...
• ... finish the non-conference portion of the schedule with a 6-7 record.
• ... defeat the Saints for the first time.
• ... finish 3-0 against the MAAC this season.
• ... improve to 2-5 in road games this season.
Headlines
• Bucknell is down to its final non-league game of the regular season as it travels to Albany on Sunday afternoon to face Siena at the Times Union Center. This will be just the second all-time meeting between the Bison and Saints and the first since 1985.
• The Bison had their two-game winning streak snapped at Wake Forest on Monday, 60-53. The team then took a few days off for the holidays before returning to practice on Friday.
• Junior Chris Hass is the team's leading scorer at 17.8 ppg. Hass was terrific in the two games against top-25 opponents earlier in the year. He scored 21 points at Michigan, and then pumped in a career-high 32 at Villanova, which is a program record for points in a game against a ranked opponent. In the two games combined, Hass produced 53 points and hit 16 of 26 from the field, 8 of 14 from 3-point distance and 13 of 14 from the foul line. Including a 14-point performance against Penn State and a 26-point showing at Wake Forest on Monday, Hass averaged 23.3 ppg in the four games against major-conference opponents this season.
• Hass was named the Lids Team Sports Patriot League Player of the Week on Nov. 24 and again on Dec. 15 after a 26-point showing in a win over Albany. Hass ranks third in the Patriot League in scoring, first in free-throw percentage (.918), third in 3-point percentage (.450) and third in 3-pointers made (3.0 per game).
• The Bison were picked to finish fifth in the Patriot League in a preseason poll of the league's head coaches and sports information directors.
• Bucknell lost four players to graduation following last season, including 2014 Patriot League Player of the Year Cameron Ayers. Also gone are former starting center Brian Fitzpatrick and experienced role players Ben Brackney and Ryan Hill. The Bison did return 10 lettermen from last year's 16-14 squad, including a 2014 Third Team All-Patriot League selection in Hass.
• Siena has had to deal with some injuries this season and comes into Sunday's game with a 3-7 record. The Saints have dropped their last four games, including a 75-57 loss to Cornell in their last outing on Tuesday. Rob Poole (13.2) and Marquis Wright (13.0) both score in double figures, and Wright also averages 5.6 assists per game. Siena finished 20-18 last season, capping the year by winning the College Basketball Invitational postseason tournament.
• Bucknell is 2-2 against teams coached by Jimmy Patsos, all between 2009-12 while Patsos was head coach at Loyola (Md.).
How to Get the Game
• The Bucknell-Siena game will be televised in New York State on Time Warner Cable Sports Channel. There will also be a web stream at SienaSaints.com. Subscription fees apply.
• The game can be heard in the Susquehanna Valley on the radio on The Valley 100.9 FM, with Doug Birdsong calling the action. The pregame show begins 30 minutes before tip-off.
• The audio feed is also available online free of charge via BucknellBison.com.
• Live stats can be accessed at SienaSaints.com.
Last Time Out
• Bucknell nearly dug itself out of a massive hole, but Wake Forest held on for a 60-53 win on Monday in Winston-Salem, N.C. The Bison started the game 1-for-19 from the field and fell behind 21-4, but a 14-1 run helped them get within a single point at 38-37 nearly eight minutes into the second half. The Demon Deacons never did relinquish the lead, however, and built their cushion back to as many as 10 down the stretch before winning by seven.
• Chris Hass led all players with 26 points, his fourth 20-point performance of the season. Hass hit 6 of 18 shots from the field, including four 3-pointers in 13 attempts, but was a perfect 10-for-10 from the foul line. His 13 attempts from beyond the arc marked a new career high, and his 37 minutes played were also a career high.
• Hass was Bucknell's lone double-digit scorer. Dom Hoffman, coming off the bench for the first time this season, tallied seven points and five rebounds.
• The Bison finished the first half 4-for-26 from the field and shot 28.6% for the game. Defensively, Bucknell held Wake Forest to 36.2% shooting and forced 13 turnovers.
• Codi Miller-McIntyre led Wake Forest with 19 points to go with eight rebounds, four assists and five steals.
• Both teams made 20 free throws (Bucknell 20-26, Wake Forest 20-35) in a game that was slowed by 52 foul calls.
Bucknell vs. Siena Series Notes
• This will be just the second meeting between Bucknell and Siena. On Dec. 27, 1985 the Saints won 83-65 in the first round of the Siena Invitational. Siena went on to beat Cornell to win the tournament, while Bucknell beat East Carolina in the consolation game.
• Mike Butts led the Bison with 13 points in that 1985 meeting, while former Marist and current James Madison head coach Matt Brady had 19 points and seven assists for the Saints.
Bucknell vs. the MAAC
• Bucknell is 46-49 (.484) all-time against the teams that currently comprise the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference, including wins over Marist and Fairfield earlier this season. The Bison are 30-24 against Rider, 6-4 against Marist, 4-5 vs. Niagara, 2-2 vs. Manhattan, 2-4 vs. Iona, 1-0 vs. St. Peter's, 1-3 vs. Fairfield, 0-6 vs. Canisius, and 0-1 vs. Siena.
Who's Got Next?
• Bucknell begins Patriot League play with a New Year's Eve matinee against defending-champion American.
• American is off until traveling to Lewisburg. The Eagles finished 7-5 in non-league play, including a 59-47 loss at Stony Brook in their most recent game on Dec. 23.
