Army Makes Final Run, Ends Bucknell’s 12-Game Series Winning Streak in 68-59 Verdict at West Point

Wednesday, January 29

West Point, N.Y.

11 a.m.

Bucknell University

9-13,5-4Patriot

Army

10-10,5-4Patriot

Bucknell

Army West Point

Photo by: Mady Salvani

Army Makes Final Run, Ends Bucknell’s 12-Game Series Winning Streak in 68-59 Verdict at West Point

1/29/2020 1:24:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Box Score Photo Gallery

WEST POINT, N.Y. – Bucknell came from 13 points down to tie the score with just over eight minutes to play, but red-hot Army West Point outscored the Bison 15-6 from there and pulled away for a 68-59 win on Education Day at Christl Arena on Wednesday morning.

John Meeks paced the Bison with 19 points and nine rebounds, and it was his free throws that tied the game 53-all with 8:11 left. Bucknell had won the last 12 games in the series, with major comebacks punctuating the last four. After trailing 19-6 in the early going, it looked like the Bison had another double-digit rally in store, but this time it was the Black Knights staging the final flurry to secure their fifth straight win.

The Bison went ice cold after tying the game, finishing 2-for-12 over the final four minutes to fall to 9-13 overall and 5-4 in the Patriot League. Army joined Bucknell at 5-4 in conference action while leveling its season mark at 10-10.

Walter Ellis joined Meeks in double figures with 11 points. Avi Toomer had seven points and five rebounds, and Kahliel Spear matched his career high with four blocked shots to go with two points, three rebounds and two steals off the bench.

Tommy Funk paced Army with 19 points, six rebounds and five assists. Matt Wilson added 16 points, Josh Caldwell scored 11, and Alex King and Lonnie Grayson scored 10 apiece as the Black Knight starting five accounted for 66 of the team's 68 points.

The Bison missed their first six shots of the day, and back-to-back layups from King gave Army that 19-6 lead at the 10:26 mark. Meeks' 3-point play got Bucknell going a bit, and then Toomer followed with a driving layup and a 3-pointer to cut the deficit to 19-14.

Army answered Bucknell's 8-0 run with a 6-0 surge of its own, and later the Black Knights led 31-19 after Tommy Funk beat the shot-clock buzzer with a fling off an inbounds play with one second remaining on the timer.

In the final two minutes, Bucknell parlayed three steals into six straight points, capped by a Toomer breakaway layup off a steal of a crosscourt pass. Grayson connected on a big 3-pointer for Army with 35 seconds left, pushing the Black Knights' lead back up to nine at 34-25 at the half.

But by the first media timeout of the second half, the Bison were right back in the game. Meeks opened the half with a 3-point play on a put-back of his own miss, Bruce Moore scored twice in the paint, and Meeks and Jimmy Sotos both hit 3-pointers as part of a 15-9 spell that brought Bucknell within 43-40.

Ellis' second trey of the day made it a one-point game at 49-48, but then the Bison went scoreless for nearly four minutes. Two free throws by Caldwell made it 53-48 before Bucknell tied it on a Sotos 3-pointer and two more free throws from Meeks, who was 6-for-6 at the stripe in the game.

Army never fell behind, however, as Tommy Funk answered the Meeks free throws with two of his own just 10 seconds later. The scored was stuck on 55-53 for the next 2:27 before King delivered two straight layups. Meeks ended Bucknell's 3:17 scoreless drought with a short jumper, but Grayson's second 3-pointer – one of only three all day in 18 attempts for Army – kicked off a 7-0 run that pushed the margin all the way up to 11 at 66-55 with 1:26 to play.

Bucknell shot 37.9 percent from the field, including 6-for-21 from 3-point range. Despite their 3-for-18 performance from long distance, Army shot 44.1 percent overall thanks to 23-for-41 shooting from inside the arc. The Black Knights entered the game ranked second nationally only to Dayton in 2-point field goal accuracy at better than 58 percent.

Both teams had good days at the foul line, where Bucknell went 9-for-10 and Army 13-14. The Black Knights were the worst free-throw shooting team in the Patriot League at 57.6 percent coming in, but they made their first 13 in this one before missing on their final attempt.

Bucknell returns home for its next two games. The Bison host Boston University on WQMY-TV on Saturday at 2 p.m., and then there will be an "Orange Out" at Sojka Pavilion on Monday when Lafayette comes to town for a CBS Sports Network broadcast.

Additional Notes:
Meeks is now 25-for-26 from the foul line in Patriot League play … he has scored in double figures in all nine conference games … Ellis has now scored in double figures in two straight games off the bench … Army's last win over Bucknell came on March 5, 2014, a 72-71 decision in the Patriot League Tournament at Sojka Paviion … Bucknell had won the last five meetings at West Point … the Bison have now alternated wins and losses over their last eight games, equaling the third-longest such streak in team history.