Sunday, January 10
Easton, Pa.
6 p.m.
Bucknell University
0-4,0-4Patriot
76
at
87
Lafayette
3-1,3-1Patriot
1
2
F
Bucknell
39
37
76
Lafayette
45
42
87
Photo by: Marc Hagemeier
Hot-Shooting Lafayette Outlasts Bucknell Men’s Basketball, 87-76
1/10/2021 8:48:00 PM | Men's Basketball
EASTON, Pa. – E.J. Stephens scored 31 points and Lafayette was red-hot from the perimeter in an 87-76 win over Bucknell on Sunday night at Kirby Sports Center. Xander Rice scored a career-high 23 points for the Bison, who shot 51 percent from the field in the game but fell to the Leopards for the second time in as many days.
Lafayette improved to 3-1 on the season, all coming in the Patriot League Central Division. Bucknell fell to 0-4 overall and 0-2 in the division.
Tyrone Perry went 4-for-4 from the arc – he was 2-for-9 on the season coming in – and scored 17 points for Lafayette, and Justin Jaworski added 15. The Leopards went 11-for-26 from 3-point distance, and that does not include three contested jumpers they hit with foot on the arc in the second half. Lafayette scored only 24 of its 87 points in the paint, compared to 42 of 76 for Bucknell.
Rice's previous career high was 13 points on opening day against Navy, but he beat that mark by 10 in this one. Rice was 9-for-14 from the field, including a 3-pointer, and he also had four assists without a turnover. Three others reached double figures as well. Andrew Funk tallied 13 points, and Miles Latimer and Paul Newman added 11 each. Newman also had a team-high eight rebounds.
After getting off to slow starts offensively in their last two games, Bucknell was quick out of the gates on Sunday. Lafayette scored first before Rice's jumper ignited an 11-0 run as the Leopards started 1-for-8 from the field. Jake van der Heijden buried a 3-pointer in that run, and Latimer's free throws made it 11-2 after 4:47 of action.
Bucknell's lead was still nine at 17-8 after a transition layup from Newman, but then the Leopards started to heat up on their home floor. They hit eight 3-pointers in the first half and flipped the game around with a 32-11 run. Jaworski's 15-foot jumper capped a spurt of 11 straight points that gave Lafayette a 40-28 lead with 3:48 left in the half.
The Bison got right back in it with another 11-2 run, sparked by a Latimer 3-pointer, a driving layup from Funk, and a Rice jumper. That pulled the Bison within 42-39 in the final minute of the half, but Jaworski beat the buzzer with a three from the right corner to make it 45-39.
Jaworski, who entered the weekend averaging 32.5 points per game, had only two field goals to that point, but his trey at the end of the first half carried over to the second, as he scored seven points in the first 4:22, including a tough step-back 3-pointer with a hand in his face for a 55-45 lead.
Lafayette was just not missing in the first half of the second stanza. The Leopards started the half 10-for-12 from the field, with all but two of those buckets coming from all around the perimeter. By the time Perry hit his fourth triple of the game, Lafayette's lead had ballooned to 22 at 79-57.
Bucknell did not go away, however. Following the Perry 3-pointer, Funk fed Andre Screen for a dunk, and that ignited 15-2 Bison run. Screen had six points in the surge, and Funk's driving layup brought the Bison within nine at 81-72. They got as close as eight after Rice's third 3-point play of the night, but could get no closer as Lafayette iced it at the foul line.
Bucknell shot 50.8 from the field despite another tough night from the arc. The Bison have struggled from downtown in their last three games, including a 5-for-19 ledger in this one.
Bucknell will be back in action next weekend with two games against Lehigh. The Mountain Hawks, who are 1-3 after losing twice to Navy this weekend, visit Sojka Pavilion on Saturday at 2 p.m. That game will stream on ESPN+ and will also be televised locally on WQMY-TV.
Lafayette improved to 3-1 on the season, all coming in the Patriot League Central Division. Bucknell fell to 0-4 overall and 0-2 in the division.
Tyrone Perry went 4-for-4 from the arc – he was 2-for-9 on the season coming in – and scored 17 points for Lafayette, and Justin Jaworski added 15. The Leopards went 11-for-26 from 3-point distance, and that does not include three contested jumpers they hit with foot on the arc in the second half. Lafayette scored only 24 of its 87 points in the paint, compared to 42 of 76 for Bucknell.
Rice's previous career high was 13 points on opening day against Navy, but he beat that mark by 10 in this one. Rice was 9-for-14 from the field, including a 3-pointer, and he also had four assists without a turnover. Three others reached double figures as well. Andrew Funk tallied 13 points, and Miles Latimer and Paul Newman added 11 each. Newman also had a team-high eight rebounds.
After getting off to slow starts offensively in their last two games, Bucknell was quick out of the gates on Sunday. Lafayette scored first before Rice's jumper ignited an 11-0 run as the Leopards started 1-for-8 from the field. Jake van der Heijden buried a 3-pointer in that run, and Latimer's free throws made it 11-2 after 4:47 of action.
Bucknell's lead was still nine at 17-8 after a transition layup from Newman, but then the Leopards started to heat up on their home floor. They hit eight 3-pointers in the first half and flipped the game around with a 32-11 run. Jaworski's 15-foot jumper capped a spurt of 11 straight points that gave Lafayette a 40-28 lead with 3:48 left in the half.
The Bison got right back in it with another 11-2 run, sparked by a Latimer 3-pointer, a driving layup from Funk, and a Rice jumper. That pulled the Bison within 42-39 in the final minute of the half, but Jaworski beat the buzzer with a three from the right corner to make it 45-39.
Jaworski, who entered the weekend averaging 32.5 points per game, had only two field goals to that point, but his trey at the end of the first half carried over to the second, as he scored seven points in the first 4:22, including a tough step-back 3-pointer with a hand in his face for a 55-45 lead.
Lafayette was just not missing in the first half of the second stanza. The Leopards started the half 10-for-12 from the field, with all but two of those buckets coming from all around the perimeter. By the time Perry hit his fourth triple of the game, Lafayette's lead had ballooned to 22 at 79-57.
Bucknell did not go away, however. Following the Perry 3-pointer, Funk fed Andre Screen for a dunk, and that ignited 15-2 Bison run. Screen had six points in the surge, and Funk's driving layup brought the Bison within nine at 81-72. They got as close as eight after Rice's third 3-point play of the night, but could get no closer as Lafayette iced it at the foul line.
Bucknell shot 50.8 from the field despite another tough night from the arc. The Bison have struggled from downtown in their last three games, including a 5-for-19 ledger in this one.
Bucknell will be back in action next weekend with two games against Lehigh. The Mountain Hawks, who are 1-3 after losing twice to Navy this weekend, visit Sojka Pavilion on Saturday at 2 p.m. That game will stream on ESPN+ and will also be televised locally on WQMY-TV.
Team Stats
Buck
Laf
FG%
.508
.492
3FG%
.263
.423
FT%
.818
.842
RB
30
35
TO
9
8
STL
4
3
Game Leaders
Pts
23
FGM
9
3FGM
1
FTM
4
Pts
13
FGM
6
3FGM
1
FTM
0
Pts
11
FGM
5
3FGM
0
FTM
1
Pts
11
FGM
4
3FGM
1
FTM
2
Players Mentioned
G
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