Bison Return to Sojka Pavilion Tuesday vs. Siena in Nightcap of Hoops Twin Bill

11/23/2015 9:47:00 PM | Men's Basketball

By: TBD

What: Siena (2-2) at Bucknell (3-1)
Where: Sojka Pavilion, Lewisburg, Pa.
When: Tuesday, Nov. 24, 2015, 7 p.m.
Webcast: Patriot League Network
Radio: Eagle 107 (100.7 FM WEGH)
Internet Radio: BucknellBison.com
Live Statistics: BucknellBison.com
Tickets: 570-577-1000 or buy online
•COMPLETE GAME NOTES

With a Win over Siena, Bucknell Would ...
• ... extend its winning streak to three straight games.
• ... improve to 4-1 on the season and 2-1 at home.
• ... start a season 4-1 or better for the first time since 2012-13 (5-0).
• ... help Nathan Davis equal the best five-game start for a first-year coach in team history.
• ... beat the Saints for the first time in three all-time meetings.
• ... improve to 134-44 all-time at Sojka Pavilion.

Headlines
• After producing two impressive road wins last week, Bucknell returns home on Tuesday to face Siena. The Bison took down defending NEC champion Robert Morris last Wednesday and two-time defending MAAC champion Manhattan on Saturday to get to 3-1 on the season. Now Bucknell will be looking to avenge last year's two-point loss to the Saints, who also come in riding a two-game winning streak.
• Bucknell has piled up plenty of offense so far. The Bison are averaging 87.5 points per game while shooting 50.6% from the field and 40.0% from 3-point range. The 107-point showing against Shenandoah in the season opener was the team's first 100-point game since 1994. The Bison have scored 80 or more points in the first four games of a season for the first time since 1991-92, and they have tallied 80+ in any four consecutive games for the first time since 1993-94, which was Charlie Woollum's final year as Bucknell's head coach.
• Preseason All-Patriot League selection Chris Hass is off to a quick start with 76 points in four games (19.0 ppg). Hass had 26 against Wake Forest on Nov. 15.
• The Bison were picked to finish second (behind Lehigh) in the Patriot League in a preseason poll of the league's head coaches and sports information directors.
• A year ago, the Bison captured the outright Patriot League regular-season title for the fourth time in the last five years before being upset by Lafayette in the Patriot League Tournament semifinals.
• Bucknell lost four players from last year's squad: point guard Steven Kaspar (graduation), forward Joshea Singleton (graduation), forward Cory Starkey (graduation) and guard J.C. Show (transfer to Binghamton).
• The Bison return all five starters and five of the top six scorers from last season. In 2015-16 Bucknell brings back 77.6% of its scoring and 74.6% of its rebounding. Heading the list of returnees are 2014-15 First Team All-Patriot League guard Chris Hass, and 2014-15 Patriot League All-Rookie Team center Nana Foulland.
• Siena opened the 2015-16 with losses to both of last year's national finalists in Duke (92-74) and Wisconsin (92-65), but the Saints bounced back with wins over Radford (76-62) and Bryant (78-59) at the 2K Classic Subregional in Smithfield, R.I. Marquis Wright leads the team in scoring at 18.0 ppg, and Lavon Long (12.8), Brett Bisping (12.3) and Nico Clareth (10.8) are also scoring in double figures through four games. Siena shot over 60% from the field against Bryant and is at 46.5% for the season.

How to Get the Game
• The Bucknell-Siena game will not be televised, however a live webcast will be available on the Patriot League Network at 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 also available online free of charge via BucknellBison.com, and for a small charge through the official Bison Athletics mobile app available in the Apple and Android marketplaces.
• Live statistics can be viewed at BucknellBison.com.

Last Time Out
• Bucknell beat a 2015 NCAA Tournament team on the road for the second time in three days when it dealt Manhattan an 80-67 defeat on Saturday at Draddy Gymnasium. Zach Thomas led the Bison with 15 points and 10 rebounds for his third career double-double. Chris Hass added 14 points, Nana Foulland had 11 points and eight rebounds, and Dom Hoffman tallied 10 points to lead a productive night for the Bison bench.
• There was only one lead change in the entire game. Manhattan went up by as many as six on a couple of occasions early in the game, but Bucknell swept into the lead for good with a 10-0 run later in the first half. Manhattan cut a 14-point deficit down to six with 6:24 to play, but the Bison responded with another 10-0 spurt to put the game away.
• Defense, rebounding and free-throw shooting proved to be the differences for Bucknell on a night when the 3-point shots weren't falling. The Bison held Manhattan to 34.3% shooting in the Jaspers' home opener and dominated the glass by a 48-33 margin. Manhattan's high-pressure defense forced 17 Bucknell turnovers, but the Jaspers also committed 29 fouls. The Bison capitalized by making 31 of 42 attempts from the line.
• Bucknell's bench accounted for 31 points, 16 rebounds, four assists and six steals. In addition to Hoffman's 10 points, Nate Jones added a career-high nine and Kimbal Mackenzie tallied seven along with four rebounds, two assists and two steals. D.J. MacLeay had five rebounds, including three big offensive boards, in nine minutes of action. Mackenzie and Azzinaro played crucial minutes at the point in the first half after Stephen Brown had to go to the bench with two early fouls.
• Brown had five assists and Ryan Frazier four as the Bison again shared the ball well. They had 15 assists on 22 made field goals.
• The Bison shot a season-low 43.1% from the field and went just 5-for-18 from the 3-point arc.

Bucknell vs. Siena Series Notes
• This will be just the third meeting between Bucknell and Siena, and the first in Lewisburg. The Saints won the previous two clashes, including a 73-71 verdict in Albany last December.
• 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.
• Last season at the Times Union Center, Marquis Wright tallied 24 points to lead Siena to the two-point win. J.C. Show had a career-high 23 points for the Bison, who had a potential game-winning 3-pointer rim out at the final buzzer. The difference for Siena was an 18-9 scoring edge at the free-throw line — 10 of their final 12 points came at the stripe — and strong defense on Bison scoring leader Chris Hass, who was held to seven points.

Bucknell vs. The MAAC
• Bucknell is 47-50 (.485) all-time against the teams that currently comprise the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference, including Saturday's win over Manhattan and a 2-1 mark last season (wins over Marist and Fairfield, loss at Siena). The Bison are 30-24 against Rider, 6-4 against Marist, 4-5 vs. Niagara, 3-2 vs. Manhattan, 2-4 vs. Iona, 1-0 vs. St. Peter's, 1-3 vs. Fairfield, 0-6 vs. Canisius, and 0-2 vs. Siena.
• The Bison again play three MAAC opponents this season, Fairfield (Dec. 27) also slated to visit Sojka Pavilion.

Numbers Worth Noting
• Through four games the Bison have recorded some impressive offensive numbers. They are averaging a league-high 87.5 points per game while shooting 50.6 FG% and 40.0 3FG%. Bucknell ranks 31st nationally in field-goal percentage and 32nd in scoring offense.
• Whether it is a result of a more up-tempo offense or the reduction to the 30-second shot clock, Bucknell is playing at a much faster pace early this season. Bucknell's first three games have seen an average of 76.5 possessions per game, compared to 65.1 for the full season in 2014-15. The Bison are averaging an efficient 1.14 points per possession so far.
• Bucknell has a 1.4:1 assist-to-turnover ratio with 83 assists and 58 turnovers. The Bison have recorded assists on 70.9% of their field goals so far (83 of 117), and they rank No. 6 nationally in assists per game at 20.8.
• All 12 Bison who have suited up so far have a positive scoring plus-minus. Nana Foulland leads the squad at +43, followed by Nate Jones at +41 and Chris Hass at +35.
• Bucknell's minutes at the power forward position have been divided between Zach Thomas and Dom Hoffman. That combo is averaging 21.3 points and 8.8 rebounds per game while shooting 50.8% from the field.
• Chris Hass has 961 career points and needs 39 to become the 39th member of Bucknell's 1,000-point club.

Who's Got Next?
• Bucknell will travel to Penn State on Saturday for a 1 p.m. contest from the Bryce Jordan Center that will be available online via Big Ten Network Plus.
• The Bison and Nittany Lions played at Sojka Pavilion last year, with Penn State winning 88-80.