Wednesday, November 28
Lewisburg, Pa.
7 p.m.
Bucknell University
78
vs
96
Northeastern
1
2
F
Northeastern
56
40
96
Bucknell
37
41
78
Photo by: Marc Hagemeier
Men's Basketball Falls to Northeastern, 96-78
11/28/2018 9:11:00 PM | Men's Basketball
LEWISBURG, Pa. – The Bucknell men's basketball team fell behind a hot-shooting Northeastern team early and lost 96-78 on Wednesday night at Sojka Pavilion. Northeastern, the preseason favorite in the Colonial Athletic Association which already boasted wins over Alabama and Harvard this season, opened a 14-point lead in the game's first five minutes on their way to outscoring the Bison 56-37 in the first half.
Bucknell (2-3) shot 48.1 percent (13-for-27) from the field in the first half, but couldn't keep pace with Northeastern (3-4), which shot a blistering 70 percent (21-30). The Huskies assisted on 15 of their 21 made field goals in the opening stanza. Thomas Murphy led five Northeastern players in double figures, scoring a game-high 21 points, to go along with a game-high 12 rebounds. Donnell Gresham finished with 16 points and a Sojka Pavilion-record 11 assists.
The Bison were led on the offensive end by Bruce Moore with 16 points, while Kimbal Mackenzie added 13 points and four assists. Paul Newman chipped in 11 points off the bench, converting on nine out of 10 free throw attempts. Nate Sestina was the fourth Bison in double figures, registering 10 points. Jimmy Sotos notched a career-high eight assists to go along with six points and a pair of steals. As a team, the Bison shot 49.1 percent (26-53) and made 11 threes, including a career-high three in three attempts by freshman Walter Ellis.
"In preparing for the game we thought Northeastern was the best team on our schedule so far, and they certainly showed that tonight," said head coach Nathan Davis. "They were very impressive offensively, and they punished us for our mistakes time after time. We were slow to react and gave them a lot of open shots, and to their credit they made almost every one of them. We will learn from it and get ready to play another hungry team in Monmouth on Saturday."
The 56 first-half points by Northeastern tied a Sojka Pavilion-record for points in a half by an opponent, matching Fairfield's second-half effort in December 2015. For the game, Northeastern shot 58.1 percent (36 of 62) and made 12 3-pointers in 25 attempts.
Bucknell overcame double-digit deficits in wins over St. Bonaventure and Vermont earlier this season, but even though the Bison were fairly efficient offensively in this one, they had a difficult time making any sustained runs with Northeastern scoring on most of their possessions at the other end.
Bolden Brace was off the mark on Northeastern's first shot of the night, but the Huskies then made eight shots in a row, including five from beyond the arc, en route to a 25-6 lead. The Bison hit three straight treys, one from Sestina and two from Sotos, A 9-2 run later in the half that trimmed a 21-point deficit to 14, but the Huskies pushed the margin back to 21 at 52-31 on a Murphy dunk in transition.
In the second half, a 3-pointer from Sestina and short jumper from Moore pulled Bucknell within 15 at 66-49. The Bison had a 3-pointer rim in and out that would have cut it to 13, and then Northeastern responded with an 8-0 run to go up 74-49, and it led by at least 15 the rest of the way.
The Bison are home again on Saturday against Monmouth at 2 p.m.
(11/28/2018) Men's Basketball vs. Northeastern
Bucknell (2-3) shot 48.1 percent (13-for-27) from the field in the first half, but couldn't keep pace with Northeastern (3-4), which shot a blistering 70 percent (21-30). The Huskies assisted on 15 of their 21 made field goals in the opening stanza. Thomas Murphy led five Northeastern players in double figures, scoring a game-high 21 points, to go along with a game-high 12 rebounds. Donnell Gresham finished with 16 points and a Sojka Pavilion-record 11 assists.
The Bison were led on the offensive end by Bruce Moore with 16 points, while Kimbal Mackenzie added 13 points and four assists. Paul Newman chipped in 11 points off the bench, converting on nine out of 10 free throw attempts. Nate Sestina was the fourth Bison in double figures, registering 10 points. Jimmy Sotos notched a career-high eight assists to go along with six points and a pair of steals. As a team, the Bison shot 49.1 percent (26-53) and made 11 threes, including a career-high three in three attempts by freshman Walter Ellis.
"In preparing for the game we thought Northeastern was the best team on our schedule so far, and they certainly showed that tonight," said head coach Nathan Davis. "They were very impressive offensively, and they punished us for our mistakes time after time. We were slow to react and gave them a lot of open shots, and to their credit they made almost every one of them. We will learn from it and get ready to play another hungry team in Monmouth on Saturday."
The 56 first-half points by Northeastern tied a Sojka Pavilion-record for points in a half by an opponent, matching Fairfield's second-half effort in December 2015. For the game, Northeastern shot 58.1 percent (36 of 62) and made 12 3-pointers in 25 attempts.
Bucknell overcame double-digit deficits in wins over St. Bonaventure and Vermont earlier this season, but even though the Bison were fairly efficient offensively in this one, they had a difficult time making any sustained runs with Northeastern scoring on most of their possessions at the other end.
Bolden Brace was off the mark on Northeastern's first shot of the night, but the Huskies then made eight shots in a row, including five from beyond the arc, en route to a 25-6 lead. The Bison hit three straight treys, one from Sestina and two from Sotos, A 9-2 run later in the half that trimmed a 21-point deficit to 14, but the Huskies pushed the margin back to 21 at 52-31 on a Murphy dunk in transition.
In the second half, a 3-pointer from Sestina and short jumper from Moore pulled Bucknell within 15 at 66-49. The Bison had a 3-pointer rim in and out that would have cut it to 13, and then Northeastern responded with an 8-0 run to go up 74-49, and it led by at least 15 the rest of the way.
The Bison are home again on Saturday against Monmouth at 2 p.m.
Team Stats
M-500
M-83
FG%
.581
.491
3FG%
.480
.440
FT%
.857
.682
RB
35
22
TO
7
10
STL
9
6
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
16
FGM
6
3FGM
1
FTM
3
Pts
13
FGM
4
3FGM
2
FTM
3
Pts
11
FGM
1
3FGM
0
FTM
9
Pts
10
FGM
4
3FGM
2
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
F
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's BasketballF
/ Men's BasketballC
/ Men's BasketballF/C
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's BasketballPost Game Interview vs. VMI
Saturday, September 13
Georgetown-Bucknell Women's Soccer Highlights 9-11-2025
Friday, September 12
In The Herd: Bucknell Invitational Preview And Mirra Manolov And Abby Platt Features
Thursday, September 11
Evelyn Bliss World's Send Off
Thursday, September 11