Bucknell University Athletics
Men's Basketball Back in Action Wednesday at Lehigh
2/7/2017 11:17:00 PM | Men's Basketball
What: Bucknell (19-6, 11-1 PL) at Lehigh (13-10, 7-5 PL)
Where: Stabler Arena, Bethlehem, Pa.
When: Wednesday, Feb. 8, 2017, 7 p.m.
Webcast: Patriot League Network
Radio: Eagle 107 (107.3 FM WEGH)
Internet Radio: BucknellBison.com
Live Statistics: LehighSports.com
• COMPLETE GAME NOTES
Bucknell Probable Starters
G: Stephen Brown (10.3 ppg, 3.5 rpg, 4.8 apg)
G: Kimbal Mackenzie (11.4 ppg, 2.2 rpg, 2.0 apg)
G: Avi Toomer (3.4 ppg, 1.8 rpg, 0.8 apg)
F: Zach Thomas (15.8 ppg, 6.6 rpg, 3.2 apg)
C: Nana Foulland (14.6 ppg, 7.8 rpg, 1.8 bpg)
With a Win over Lehigh, Bucknell Would ...
• ... earn its eighth straight victory and 12th in the last 13 tries. An eight-game winning streak would be the longest since 2011-12, when the Bison won 12 straight.
• ... extend its road winning streak to seven games, which would also be the longest since 2011-12.
• ... move to 20-6 overall, 12-1 in the Patriot League, and 9-4 on the road this season.
• ... reach the 20-win mark for the 13th time in school history and fourth time in the last seven years.
• ... maintain at least a three-game lead in the Patriot League standings with five to play.
• ... avenge an 82-71 loss to the Mountain Hawks on Jan. 11, which is Bucknell's only conference setback thus far.
• ... improve to 262-113 all-time in Patriot League regular-season games.
Headlines
• Bucknell upped its lead in the Patriot League to three games with an 82-68 win over Holy Cross on Monday night, and now the Bison have a quick turnaround before facing Lehigh in a marquee matchup at Stabler Arena on Wednesday. The Bison and Mountain Hawks have been two of the top teams in the Patriot League in recent years and have developed quite a rivalry dating back to the early part of the decade when current NBAers Mike Muscala and C.J. McCollum helped their teams alternate PL titles from 2010-13.
• Bucknell will be looking to break the “Monday Night Jinx”. In the first three weeks of CBS Sports Network Monday-night games, the participants are a combined 0-6 in their next game on short rest. Bucknell and Holy Cross (at Lafayette) will be looking to reverse that trend. The good news for Bison fans is that Bucknell is 3-1 this season on one or zero days rest between games, including the win over Vanderbilt in November. They also have wins over Northern Colorado and Mount St. Mary's on short rest, while the loss came at Wake Forest on the opening weekend of the season.
• Bucknell has tied a school record by winning seven straight games, all by double figures. The last time Bucknell won seven straight games, all by 10 points or more, was in 1992-93, when Charlie Woollum's Bison accomplished the feat. Bucknell has had three other such seven-game streaks, all coming between 1899 and 1907. The average victory margin in the current streak is 16.6 points.
• Entering the Holy Cross game, Bucknell had won three straight games by 20 or more points, which was the first time doing that since the Calvin Coolidge administration. In January of 1928, Bucknell defeated Haverford (45-25), Schuylkill (66-16) and Susquehanna (46-20) in succession. The Bison were trying for four straight 20-point wins for the first time since 1907 and held a 24-point lead with nine minutes to play, but the Crusaders cut into the margin in the final minutes and ended the streak.
• Through Tuesday's games, Bucknell was one of seven teams in Division I with 11 or more conference wins.
• During this seven-game winning streak ... :
• Bucknell is shooting 51.2% as a team, including 41.6% from 3-point range.
• Limited opponents to 42.5% shooting, including 29.1% from 3-point range.
• Bucknell has a +44 rebounding margin.
• Bucknell has outscored opponents 121-62 from the free throw line (opponents have attempted only 107).
• Bucknell ranks No. 20 in this week's CollegeInsider Mid-Major Poll, up five spots from last week.
• Nana Foulland is 66-for-98 (.673) from the field in his last 10 games and 69-for-105 (.657) in the 12 league games. For the season, his 63.6 FG% ranks 10th nationally. As a team, Bucknell ranks 36th out of 347 Division I teams with a field-goal percentage of 48.1%.
• Foulland on Jan. 18 became the 40th member of the 1,000-point club at Bucknell. Foulland also became the 19th Bison with 1,000 points and 500 rebounds, and he is the 21st Bucknell player to score 1,000 points in his third varsity season.
• Kimbal Mackenzie is averaging 14.3 points per game in Patriot League play, the ninth-best mark in the league. He has four 20-point games this season, three of them coming against PL foes Navy (22), American (24) and Army West Point (23). In two of those games, Mackenzie was the catalyst in big comebacks on the road. He had 19 second-half points to help the Bison rally from 11 points down to beat Navy, and he scored 18 after halftime as Bucknell came from seven points down to defeat American. Mackenzie had a season and career-high 25 in a good home win over Richmond.
• Thomas leads the team and ranks No. 3 in the Patriot League in scoring at 15.8 points per game. Thomas, who has been on triple-double watch on a couple of occasions this season, is the only player in the league who ranks in the top 10 in points, rebounds (7th) and assists (10th). Thomas is coming off a career-high 27-point night against Holy Cross, when he shot 7-for-9 from the field, 4-for-5 from the arc, and 9-for-10 from the foul line.
• Bucknell went 8-5 against a tough non-conference schedule, including a 4-1 mark at home. This was Bucknell's most successful pre-conference slate since 2012-13, when the Bison went 13-3 before the start of Patriot League action.
• Bucknell closed the month of November with a four-game winning streak that consisted of victories over Vanderbilt, Norfolk State, Northern Colorado and Richmond. The middle two came in Las Vegas, where the Bison claimed the “Upper Division” title at the Continental Tire Las Vegas Invitational. The 75-72 victory over Vanderbilt was the team's first win over a Southeastern Conference team since 2006, when it took down Arkansas in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. It was the first victory over a “major conference” team since 2013-14, when Bucknell won at Penn State.
• Bucknell on Wednesday will have to slow down a Lehigh team that leads the Patriot League in scoring (76.1) and all three shooting percentages (49.1 FG%, 39.7 3FG%, 75.7 FT%). Leading the way is two-time Patriot League Player of the Year Tim Kempton, who averages a double-double with 20.2 points and 10.1 points per game. Austin Price (12.2), Kahron Ross (11.3) and Kyle Leufroy (10.3) also score in double figures. Lehigh enters the game tied for fourth place in the Patriot League at 7-5.
How to Get the Game
• The Bucknell-Lehigh game will be televised by Service Electric Cable (channel 50) in the Lehigh Valley. The broadcast will also stream live on the Patriot League Network at PatriotLeague.TV.
• The game will also stream live on Twitter. Follow @PatriotLeagueTV or @CampusInsiders to access the broadcast.
• The game can be heard in the Susquehanna Valley on the radio on Eagle 107 (107.3 WEGH), with Doug Birdsong calling the action. The pregame show begins 30 minutes before tip-off.
• The Bucknell audio feed is also available online via BucknellBison.com (personal computers) and the official Bucknell Athletics app (iPhone and Android devices).
• Live stats can be found at LehighSports.com.
• Follow @Bucknell_MBB for in-game updates on Twitter.
Bucknell vs. Lehigh
• Bucknell has played more games (167) and won more games (101) against Lehigh than any other school. The Bison have a 101-66 lead in a series that originated in 1902.
• Since the start of Patriot League play in 1990-91, Bucknell holds a 41-20 advantage, including a 22-8 mark at home.
• Lehigh owns the most wins of any team over Bucknell in Sojka Pavilion (7).
• Lehigh is responsible for snapping Bucknell's 35-game home winning streak against Patriot League foes. The Bison had not lost to a conference opponent at Sojka Pavilion in nearly five years, until the Mountain Hawks won 56-54 in Lewisburg on Jan. 30, 2008.
• Lehigh also won the first game ever played in Sojka Pavilion, a 60-56 decision on Jan. 15, 2003. Including that game, Bucknell is 10-7 against the Mountain Hawks in Sojka.
• Bucknell and Lehigh split their two meetings last season, with the road team winning both games. The Bison won the first meeting at Stabler Arena, 82-76. Chris Hass led the Bison with 21 points, while Stephen Brown added 14 points and six assists. Tim Kempton (29) and Kyle Leufroy (23) both recorded career scoring highs and combined for 52 of Lehigh's 76 points. In the rematch at Sojka Pavilion, the Mountain Hawks prevailed 80-65. Kempton had 23 points and 12 rebounds, and Kahron Ross had 24 points. Zach Thomas scored 17 to lead the Bison, and Nana Foulland had a double-double with 13 points and 10 rebounds. Lehigh started the game 16-for-22 from the field and led 41-15 at one point in the first half.
• Back on Jan. 11 at Sojka Pavilion, the Bison stormed back from 18 points down in the second half to tie the game, but the Mountain Hawks finished the game on a 16-5 run over the final 5:45 to win 82-71. The battle of All-Patriot League centers was a wash, as Foulland and Kempton both finished with 20 points. Foulland was 7-for-9 from the field and 6-for-8 from the foul line to go with seven rebounds. Kempton had eight boards and went 8-for-13 from the field, including a 3-pointer, and 3-for-3 from the line. While Lehigh was 10-for-17 from 3-point range, the Bison hit just 6 of 23.
Patriot League Success
• Bucknell is 261-113 (.698) all-time in Patriot League regular-season games, the best record of any league team. The Bison have clinched at least a .500 record in PL play for the 23rd time in 27 Patriot League seasons.
• Bucknell won three straight outright Patriot League regular-season titles from 2011-13, becoming the first team in league history to accomplish that feat. The Bison have now won five of the last six, after claiming titles in 2015 and 2016 as well.
• Bucknell has won 10 Patriot League regular-season titles in 26 years. No other team has more than five.
• Last year Bucknell made its seventh Patriot League Tournament appearance as the No. 1 seed.
• The Bison went 13-1 in the league in 2011 and 12-2 in both 2012 and 2013, making them 37-5 over those three campaigns. Dating back to mid-2010, Bucknell has won 93 of its last 117 league games.
• Bucknell won Patriot League Tournament titles in 2005, 2006, 2011 and 2013. The Bison have made it to the semifinals 19 times and to the championship game 10 times in the 26-year history of the league.
• The Bison are the only team to go unbeaten in league play in a season (14-0 in 2006).
• Bucknell's consistency in league play even predates the Patriot League. Going all the way back to 1975-76, when the Bison played in the East Coast Conference, the team has had only eight seasons with losing conference records out of 42, and never more than two in a row.
Last Time Out
• Zach Thomas led a first-half 3-point barrage and scored a career-high 27 points, sparking the Bison to an 82-68 victory over Holy Cross at Sojka Pavilion on Monday night.
• Kimbal Mackenzie added 17 points and a career-high-tying seven assists with no turnovers for the Bison, who tied a school record by winning seven straight games all by double digits.
• Bucknell had another strong opening stanza, shooting 62.5% (15-24) on its way to a 48-33 halftime lead. Thomas hit all four of his 3-pointers in the first half — two of them coming from well beyond the arc — and the team shot 9 of 16 from long distance against the Crusaders' 1-3-1 zone defense. For the game, the Bison also added 14 fast-break points, many of which came off their 10 steals.
• Bucknell shot an even 50% from the field, its ninth time in the last 11 games hitting at least 50%. The Bison finished 13-for-30 (.433) from 3-point range and 19-for-24 (.792) from the foul line.
• Holy Cross shot 48.2% overall, including 5-for-17 (.294) from the arc. The Crusaders were 9-for-12 from the foul line. Holy Cross came in leading the Patriot League in steals with 9.2 per game, and it added 14 more in this one.
Numbers Worth Noting
• Bucknell has allowed 81.3 points per game in its six losses and 63.4 ppg in its 18 victories.
• Bucknell has posted three of its four biggest comeback victories on the road this season. They overcame deficits of 13 (Navy), 11 (Vanderbilt) and seven (American) to pull out good wins away from home. Bucknell also rallied from eight down to beat Boston University at home.
• Bucknell's transition defense has been strong thus far. The Bison have given up only 93 fastbreak points through 25 games. They went three straight contests (Vanderbilt, Norfolk State, Northern Colorado) without giving up any fastbreak points. Meanwhile, Bucknell has scored 167 fastbreak points on the season.
• Matt O'Reilly has attempted 131 shots during his career at Bucknell. Of those, 126 have come from beyond the 3-point arc. He is 2-for-5 in his career on 2-point shots, with his first make coming against Richmond earlier this season. O'Reilly ranks 13th nationally in 3-point attempts per minute at 0.32.
• Stephen Brown leads the Bison in +/- with a +245 on the season. Nana Foulland is next at +178.
• Bison opponents have shot 50% or better from the field only four times this season, and Bucknell is 0-4 in those games (Wake Forest, Butler, La Salle, Lehigh). The Bison are 18-2 when holding opponents under 50%.
• Bucknell is averaging a solid 1.07 points per possession this season, while opponents are averaging 0.97.
• The Bison have shot 50% or better from the field in nine of their last 11 games.
• Bucknell has a +69 rebound margin in its last 10 games. The Bison are 12-0 this season when outrebounding their opponent.
• Kimbal Mackenzie scored in double figures in two of his first 11 games of the season, but now he has 10 or more in the scoring column in 12 of his last 14.
• Mackenzie is 15-for-26 from 3-point range in his last six games and 35-for-37 from the foul line in his last 11 games.
• D.J. MacLeay has 21 points and 21 rebounds in 48 minutes over his last four games. MacLeay averages 14.9 points and a team-high 14.9 rebounds per 40 minutes.
• Brown has 57 assists and 23 turnovers in his last 11 games.
• Bucknell has attempted more free throws than its opponent in 18 of 25 games this season. The Bison are 16-2 in those games.
Who's Got Next?
• Following the Lehigh game, Bucknell will be off until next Monday, when it hosts Colgate on CBS Sports Network. Game time is 7 p.m. from Sojka Pavilion.
• The Bison topped Colgate 83-69 in Hamilton back on Jan. 14.
