Bucknell University Athletics
Update on Bison Hoops Alumni in the Pros
11/30/2015 12:18:00 PM | Men's Basketball
LEWISBURG, Pa. -- The Bucknell men's basketball program has graduated dozens of former players into the professional ranks through the years, and four recent alumni are currently active on pro teams. The most prominent of those is Mike Muscala '13, who is in his third season with the NBA's Atlanta Hawks.
Muscala was drafted 44th overall by the Dallas Mavericks in 2013, and then he was traded on draft night to the Hawks. While Muscala began his pro career in Spain, the Hawks retained his contractual rights, and the NBA club signed him mid-season after it had sustained some injuries in its frontcourt. When Muscala debuted in Phoenix on March 2, 2014, he became the first Bucknell alum to play in a regular-season NBA game.
Muscala has been with the Hawks ever since. Last year, he was a backup center and forward, averaging 4.9 points and 3.0 rebounds per game. Muscala saw extensive playing time down the stretch as the Hawks clinched the division title with plenty to spare, and his career highlight came in the Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Semifinal series against Washington, when he hit a game-tying 3-pointer with 14 seconds remaining to cap a huge comeback from 21 points down in the fourth quarter. Unfortunately for Muscala and the Hawks, the shot was overshadowed a few moments later by Paul Pierce's buzzer-beater, but Atlanta would go on to win the series.
This season, Muscala is again part of the Hawks' frontcourt reserve unit. He missed a few games early in the season due to a sprained ankle, but he has played in 13 games while averaqing 4.5 points and 2.0 rebounds. He had a season-high 11 points in 24 minutes in a victory over Memphis last week. The Hawks are 11-8 and in third place in the Southeast Division.
After playing in the NBA D-League last season, Cameron Ayers '14 has headed overseas and is in his first year with BC Siauliai in Lithuania. Ayers is averaging 8.0 points per game as a starting guard in Lithuania's top division, and he is scoring 8.8 points per game in his team's competitions in the FIBA Europe Cup. BC Siauliai, which features another former Patriot Leaguer in Holy Cross alum Dave Dudzinski, is off to a 5-7 start this season.
Brian Fitzpatrick '14 is back for his second year with Horsens IC in Denmark, and he has helped that team to a terrific 10-0 start. Horsens captured the Danish Cup championship in 2015, and Fitzpatrick was named MVP of the finals. This season he is averaging 10.8 points and 5.8 rebounds through 10 games.
After graduating last spring, Cory Starkey '15 received a Victory Scholarship, which is enabling him to continue both his academic and basketball pursuits in Ireland this year. Starkey is playing for the Galway Titans and studying at the National University of Ireland in Galway. Starkey's team is off to an 0-2 start, but he is doing so much more than just playing basketball in Ireland.
Another member of Bucknell's Class of 2015, Joshea Singleton, is also continuing his playing career. Singleton was injured all of last season for the Bison, so he is currently using his final year of eligibility as a graduate student at North Carolina A&T. Singleton has started all six games so far for the Aggies and is averaging 5.0 points per game.
