Bucknell University Athletics
Bucknell University
16-12; 13-4
Lafayette
5-23; 2-15
Hass Scores 30 to Lead Bison Men Past Lafayette 86-83 in Double-OT
2/24/2016 11:07:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Note: The final Backcourt Club luncheon of the season will take place on Thursday at noon at La Primavera Restaurant on Rt. 45 in Lewisburg. The $10 admission includes a buffet lunch. Coach Nathan Davis and select Bison student-athletes will be in attendence.
EASTON, Pa. – Chris Hass scored 15 of his game-high 30 points after the end of regulation, leading the Bucknell men's basketball team to a critical 86-83 double-overtime win over Lafayette and at least a share of its fifth Patriot League regular-season title in the last six years. Hass' deep 3-pointer with 15 seconds remaining forced double overtime, and then he scored 11 of Bucknell's 13 points in the second OT session to keep the Bison one game in front of Lehigh for the Patriot League lead with one game to play in the regular season.
Now 16-12 overall and 13-4 in the Patriot League, the Bison had to overcome a game effort from the defending-champion Leopards (5-23, 2-15 PL), who dropped their 12th straight game, but four of those have come in overtime.
Lehigh had already won decisively at Colgate, meaning the Bison had to rally to protect their one-game advantage over the Mountain Hawks. Bucknell can finish no worse than tied for first, but the No. 1 seed for the Patriot League Tournament is not quite locked up. The Bison can do so with a win at Navy, a Lehigh loss at Army West Point, a Boston University win over Holy Cross, or a Lafayette win over Colgate on Saturday.
“That was a great college basketball game,” said coach Nathan Davis afterward. “Lafayette played really well, and I thought we also played well. Every time we had a breakdown defensively they made us pay for it. That is the sign of a very well coached team, and it is also a sign that there is not much difference between any two teams in the Patriot League. The fact that we have been on top of the league all year is a great accomplishment by our guys.”
The game was tied at 35 at halftime after the two teams traded big runs early on. The Bison faced small deficits for most of the second half, but Hass hit a big trey to put them ahead 65-63 with 1:33 to go after he had struggled from long range for much of the night.
Bryce Scott answered with a layup before Stephen Brown (16 points) drove to the basket for a layup with 51 seconds to go. Matt Klinewski hit a baseline jumper to tie it again at 67 with 0:31 to go. Bucknell played for the last shot, but after pump-faking around a defender, Zach Thomas hit a jumper that beat the game clock but was ruled to be after the shot clock expired.
Nick Lindner got a contested layup to go that gave the Leopards a 73-70 lead with 39 seconds left in the first overtime period. As the clock dwindled to 15 seconds, Hass stepped behind a screen and drained a deep 3-pointer that tied the game again. Bucknell stayed alive with a good defensive stand, forcing Lindner into a 23-footer that came up well short as time expired.
Lafayette took two-point leads three different times in the second overtime, but each time Hass had a response. His trey with 1:50 to go put the Bison ahead 80-79. Zach Rufer, who led the Leopards with 20 points, made 1 of 2 at the line to tie it at 80.
Hass was bumped on the perimeter by a hedging Nathaniel Musters, and he made both free throws to put Bucknell back in front. Scott missed a three at the other end, and the Bison had the ball with the lead as the clock went under one minute.
Hass finally missed, but in one the key plays of the entire night, Dom Hoffman tipped out the rebound. Not long after, Brown slashed down the lane for a lefty layup and an 84-80 lead.
Lafayette was not done, as Rufer canned a three to make it a one-point game with eight seconds left. The Bison were able to inbound to Hass under pressure, and again Hass made both at the line. Scott's right-wing three attempt was well off the mark, and the Bison had to inbound one more time to preserve the victory.
“Chris Hass was great for us down the stretch,” said Davis. “He just wants to win. His jump shot was off for a good part of the night, but he played very unselfishly and got other guys involved. Then obviously he hit some big shots when we needed them late in the game.”
The Bison had not been accustomed to playing close games this season. This was just the fifth game all season that was decided in the final minute or later, and just their second overtime game. It was Bucknell's first double-overtime game since Dec. 30, 2008, a home win over St. Bonaventure.
Bucknell shot 41.2 percent on the night and hit 10 of 32 shots from the 3-point arc. The 32 attempts were two shy of the school record. Lafayette shot an even 40.0 percent and went 8-for-27 from the arc.
The Bison outrebounded Lafayette 52-37, with four different players collecting eight rebounds apiece. Nana Foulland tallied nine points, eight rebounds and five blocked shots, and Hass, Brown and Thomas also finished with eight boards each. Brown's rebound tally was a career high.
Hass finished 8-for-18 from the field, 4-for-10 from the 3-point arc, and 10-for-12 from the foul line en route to his fourth career 30-point game.
After Bucknell opened with two quick buckets to go up 4-0, Lafayette scored 15 straight points to grab an early 11-point lead. The Bison responded at the defensive end, holding the Leopards without a field goal for nearly six minutes while drawing even with a 13-2 run. Ryan Frazier scored the team's first eight points in the run, on a pair of 3-pointers and two free throws. Those would be his only eight points of the night, but they proved to be critical in getting the Bison back in the game.
Brown hit a 3-pointer with 39 seconds left in the half to put the Bison up 35-32, but Paulius Zalys' 3-point play at the other end tied it at 35 at the break.
Bucknell is 13-4 in the Patriot League, followed by Lehigh at 12-5, Boston University at 10-7, and then Colgate, Navy and Army at 9-8. Should the Bison and Mountain Hawks finish the regular season tied – they split their two meetings earlier this season -- Bucknell would claim the No. 1 seed for the Patriot League Tournament provided Boston University remains in front of Colgate. The Bison swept Boston University this season but lost both to Colgate.
Bucknell and Navy meet Saturday at 4 p.m. at Alumni Hall.
