Saturday, February 16
Worcester, Mass.
12 p.m.
Bucknell University
17-9, 11-3
71
at
72
Holy Cross
14-13, 5-9
1
2
F
Bucknell
34
37
71
Holy Cross
31
41
72
Photo by: Jon Lambert
Men's Basketball Clipped at Holy Cross, 72-71
2/16/2019 2:10:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Sestina logs 17 points, 15 rebounds
WORCESTER, Mass. -- Matt Faw answered Kimbal Mackenzie's late go-ahead 3-pointer with one of his own with six seconds remaining, sending Holy Cross to a 72-71 victory over Bucknell on Saturday afternoon at the Hart Center. The Bison saw their five-game winning streak come to an end and fell to 17-9 overall and 11-3 in the Patriot League. Bucknell's lead atop the conference will be either one or two games, pending Lehigh's result later in the day at Boston University.
Nate Sestina posted his ninth double-double of the season with 17 points and 15 rebounds, and Mackenzie added 16 points for the Bison. Bucknell piled up a 45-27 rebounding edge, which led to a 26-12 margin in second-chance points, but the Bison could not overcome a season-high 23 turnovers, the last of which was a pivotal call in the game.
Bucknell trailed 69-65 in the final 90 seconds before Avi Toomer hit a big 3-pointer. The Bison got a defensive stop, and then Andrew Funk came up short on a three attempt. The ball was tipped out of bounds and initially given to Holy Cross, but the call was overturned after a lengthy replay review. On the ensuing inbounds, Mackenzie took a pass from Funk on the left wing and swished the go-ahead three.
Holy Cross had been just 2-for-15 from outside the arc on the day, but Faw caught a pass at the top of the key, waited for a defender to fly by, and then put the Crusaders back in front 72-71 with six seconds to go.
Mackenzie raced the ball up the court and passed to Funk on the right wing, but well after Mackenzie released the ball he landed on Jehyve Floyd, and the charging foul was given with 4.2 seconds left. After a timeout, Holy Cross inbounded to Caleb Green, who appeared to be slapped on the hip by Mackenzie trying to give the foul. It was not called, and the Bison finally caught up to Green at mid-court, but with just 0.8 remaining. Green missed both free throws, but Mackenzie's 80-foot heave at the buzzer was on line but just a bit short.
Floyd led Holy Cross (14-13, 5-9 PL) with 19 points and eight rebounds, while Jacob Grandison added 17 points, Green 14, and Austin Butler 11. The Crusaders shot 42.4 percent for the game, but turned Bucknell's 23 turnovers into a 28-5 edge in second-chance points.
Bucknell finished at 44.8 percent from the floor, including a 9-for-29 showing from 3-point distance. The Bison were whistled for 23 fouls and played the final few minutes without starters Bruce Moore and Jimmy Sotos, who fouled out. That helped lead to a 19-10 scoring margin from the foul line for Holy Cross.
Bucknell received a big lift from its bench in the first half. Reserves Paul Newman, Walter Ellis, Funk and John Meeks all made a pair of buckets, with Ellis knocking down two straight from beyond the arc.
Even though Mackenzie and Sestina were limited to one field goal apiece in the first 20 minutes, the Bison were able to take a 34-31 lead to the locker room despite nine turnovers and 41-percent shooting.
After a slow start, Bucknell went up by as many as eight after a Meeks 3-pointer, but Holy Cross quickly replied with a 9-0 run, ignited by a Floyd tip-dunk. Trailing 30-29, Avi Toomer connected on a 3-pointer and then fed Sestina for a layup to push the Bison in front before the break.
Holy Cross charged out of the locker room with an 11-2 run to take its largest lead of the day, six points at 42-36. The Bison responded with a 16-4 spurt, ignited by a Mackenzie 3-pointer and later fueled by three interior buckets by Sestina. Most of that came with Floyd on the bench with four fouls, but he came back in around the 10-minute mark and scored seven straight Holy Cross points as part of a 9-2 run.
There would be six ties and five lead changes the rest of the way. The Crusaders went up 68-63 on Floyd's 3-point play with 2:58 to go, but Mackenzie's trey with 15 seconds left capped an 8-1 run for the Bison.
Bucknell is back on the road on Tuesday at Colgate at 7 p.m. The Bison beat the Raiders 84-81 in Lewisburg on Jan. 9 in the first of two regular-season meetings between the 2018 Patriot League championship game participants.
Nate Sestina posted his ninth double-double of the season with 17 points and 15 rebounds, and Mackenzie added 16 points for the Bison. Bucknell piled up a 45-27 rebounding edge, which led to a 26-12 margin in second-chance points, but the Bison could not overcome a season-high 23 turnovers, the last of which was a pivotal call in the game.
Bucknell trailed 69-65 in the final 90 seconds before Avi Toomer hit a big 3-pointer. The Bison got a defensive stop, and then Andrew Funk came up short on a three attempt. The ball was tipped out of bounds and initially given to Holy Cross, but the call was overturned after a lengthy replay review. On the ensuing inbounds, Mackenzie took a pass from Funk on the left wing and swished the go-ahead three.
Holy Cross had been just 2-for-15 from outside the arc on the day, but Faw caught a pass at the top of the key, waited for a defender to fly by, and then put the Crusaders back in front 72-71 with six seconds to go.
Mackenzie raced the ball up the court and passed to Funk on the right wing, but well after Mackenzie released the ball he landed on Jehyve Floyd, and the charging foul was given with 4.2 seconds left. After a timeout, Holy Cross inbounded to Caleb Green, who appeared to be slapped on the hip by Mackenzie trying to give the foul. It was not called, and the Bison finally caught up to Green at mid-court, but with just 0.8 remaining. Green missed both free throws, but Mackenzie's 80-foot heave at the buzzer was on line but just a bit short.
Floyd led Holy Cross (14-13, 5-9 PL) with 19 points and eight rebounds, while Jacob Grandison added 17 points, Green 14, and Austin Butler 11. The Crusaders shot 42.4 percent for the game, but turned Bucknell's 23 turnovers into a 28-5 edge in second-chance points.
Bucknell finished at 44.8 percent from the floor, including a 9-for-29 showing from 3-point distance. The Bison were whistled for 23 fouls and played the final few minutes without starters Bruce Moore and Jimmy Sotos, who fouled out. That helped lead to a 19-10 scoring margin from the foul line for Holy Cross.
Bucknell received a big lift from its bench in the first half. Reserves Paul Newman, Walter Ellis, Funk and John Meeks all made a pair of buckets, with Ellis knocking down two straight from beyond the arc.
Even though Mackenzie and Sestina were limited to one field goal apiece in the first 20 minutes, the Bison were able to take a 34-31 lead to the locker room despite nine turnovers and 41-percent shooting.
After a slow start, Bucknell went up by as many as eight after a Meeks 3-pointer, but Holy Cross quickly replied with a 9-0 run, ignited by a Floyd tip-dunk. Trailing 30-29, Avi Toomer connected on a 3-pointer and then fed Sestina for a layup to push the Bison in front before the break.
Holy Cross charged out of the locker room with an 11-2 run to take its largest lead of the day, six points at 42-36. The Bison responded with a 16-4 spurt, ignited by a Mackenzie 3-pointer and later fueled by three interior buckets by Sestina. Most of that came with Floyd on the bench with four fouls, but he came back in around the 10-minute mark and scored seven straight Holy Cross points as part of a 9-2 run.
There would be six ties and five lead changes the rest of the way. The Crusaders went up 68-63 on Floyd's 3-point play with 2:58 to go, but Mackenzie's trey with 15 seconds left capped an 8-1 run for the Bison.
Bucknell is back on the road on Tuesday at Colgate at 7 p.m. The Bison beat the Raiders 84-81 in Lewisburg on Jan. 9 in the first of two regular-season meetings between the 2018 Patriot League championship game participants.
Team Stats
BUCKNELL
HC
FG%
.448
.424
3FG%
.310
.200
FT%
.769
.731
RB
45
27
TO
23
11
STL
6
11
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
17
FGM
7
3FGM
0
FTM
3
Pts
16
FGM
4
3FGM
3
FTM
5
Pts
9
FGM
3
3FGM
2
FTM
1
Pts
7
FGM
3
3FGM
1
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
F
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's BasketballF
/ Men's Basketball
F
/ Men's Basketball
C
/ Men's BasketballF/C
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's BasketballG
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