Bucknell University Athletics
Bucknell University
Army West Point
Team Effort Helps Bison Knock Off Preseason Favorite Army West Point, 79-69
1/2/2016 6:26:00 PM | Women's Basketball
LEWISBURG, Pa. – A solid team effort helped Bucknell overcome an outstanding performance from one of the best players in the league in a 79-69 win over visiting Army West Point in a Patriot League women's basketball game Saturday at Sojka Pavilion. Three players scored at least 20 points to help the Bison improve to 8-5 overall and 2-0 in league play.
Junior forward Claire DeBoer led Bucknell with 22 points, while freshman forward Kaitlyn Slagus scored 21 and sophomore guard Jacquie Klotz tallied 20. It was the first time three Bison players scored at least 20 points in a game since 2000, and the first time the team has started 2-0 in Patriot League play since the 2007-08 season. Two-time Patriot League Player of the Year Kelsey Minato poured in 35, but it wasn't enough for Army West Point as it dropped to 10-2 overall and 1-1 in the conference. The Black Knights had won seven straight games prior to Saturday.
Bucknell tied a program record with 12 3-pointers on 57 percent shooting from beyond the arc. Klotz made four of her five attempts, DeBoer drained all three of her shots from long range, and Slagus and freshman guard Kyi English hit two apiece. English, who finished with 10 points, made 3-pointers on back-to-back possessions, helping the Bison up their lead from five (61-56) to nine (67-58) with 5:01 left in the game.
“I think our players saw against one of the best defenses out there, in both the league and in the country, that if we take care of the basketball and move the ball the way that we did, that we are a tough cover,” said Bucknell head coach Aaron Roussell, referencing an Army West Point defense that ranked 10th in the nation in points allowed, giving up just 50.5 per game.
Bucknell built its lead to 12 on a jumper by DeBoer early in the fourth quarter, but Army West Point stormed back with a 10-0 run that took just four possessions and 1:05 off the clock. Jean Parker started the run with back-to-back 3-pointers, and Janae McNeal cut the deficit to four with a layup. Following an offensive rebound by McNeal on the Black Knights' next possession, Aimee Oertner made a layup to trim the Bison lead to 56-54 with 8:05 remaining in the final quarter.
The teams traded layups before junior guard Megan McGurk came through in the clutch for Bucknell with a driving layup and a free throw to complete the three-point play. That came after three offensive rebounds and right before English made two 3-pointers to up the lead to nine.
“That three-point play was huge for us,” Roussell said. “I think that calmed us down a bit. Megan has been a lot better at attacking the basket lately, and that was a huge possession.”
Bucknell took a 10-point lead, 36-26, into the half after an exciting two quarters by both teams. Slagus (13 points), Klotz (13) and DeBoer (10) combined for all of the Bison's scoring, while Minato went 9-of-14 and scored 20 points for Army.
Klotz tallied nine rebounds to finish just one shy of a double-double, helping Bucknell out-rebound its opponent (33-32) for the 12th time in 13 games this season. Slagus finished with eight, and DeBoer pulled down five boards. DeBoer, Klotz and senior guard Tyler Craig registered four assists apiece. Craig was also lauded by Roussell for her defensive effort against Minato. As a team, the Bison finished with 18 assists on 27 field goals while turning the ball over just 11 times.
Bucknell improved to 33-24 in the all-time series with Army West Point, but it was just their second win in the past nine meetings. The Black Knights were picked as the heavy favorite to win the conference this season in the league's preseason poll.
The Bison will look to start 3-0 in the Patriot League for the first time since the 2006-07 season when they travel to play American on Wednesday at 7 p.m.
