Women's Basketball Clashes with Lehigh in Battle of Unbeatens This Weekend

LEWISBURG, Pa. – Bucknell and Lehigh match up for the 88^th and 89^th times in program history this weekend in a battle between two of the three unbeaten Patriot League teams remaining. The two Pennsylvania teams look to grab an upper hand in the Patriot League Central division, as both are 2-0 after sweeping Lafayette. It's the second-consecutive season the Bison and Mountain Hawks have clashed with undefeated league records.

Bucknell and Lehigh were picked first and fourth, respectively, in the Patriot League Preseason Poll and haven't disappointed on the court. While Bucknell continues to stump opponents on defense, the Mountain Hawks have caught fire on offense and have won games by hanging big numbers on the board. This weekend's games pit the nation's best scoring defense against the Patriot League's top scoring offense, and Bucknell's first-ranked 3-point defense against Lehigh's NCAA Division I-leading 12.3 threes per game.

Week 3 Digital Program
Game Notes
2020-21 Media Guide

SERIES GAME ONE
What: Bucknell (4-0, 2-0 PL Central) at Lehigh (4-0, 2-0 PL Central)
When: Saturday, Jan. 16 at 2 p.m.
Where: Stabler Arena - Bethlehem, Pa.
Internet Stream (US): ESPN+ | Internet Stream (International): SIDEARM Sports
Radio: 90.5 WVBU
Internet Radio: BucknellBison.com
Live Statistics: LehighSports.com

SERIES GAME TWO
What: Lehigh at Bucknell
When: Sunday, Jan. 17 at 4 p.m.
Where: Sojka Pavilion - Lewisburg, Pa. | VIRTUAL SEASON TICKETS
Internet Stream (US): ESPN+ | Internet Stream (International): SIDEARM Sports
Radio: 90.5 WVBU
Internet Radio: BucknellBison.com
Live Statistics: BucknellBison.com

Bucknell Probable Starters
G: Ally Johnson (6.8 ppg, 1.0 rpg, 3.3 apg)
G: Taylor O'Brien (15.0 ppg, 5.0 rpg, 2.0 spg)
G: Abby Kapp (10.3 ppg, 3.3 rpg, 1.0 spg)
F: Tessa Brugler (13.0 ppg, 8.0 rpg, 1.8 apg)
F: Autumn Ceppi (6.8 ppg, 4.0 rpg, 3.3 apg)

With a Win over Lehigh, Bucknell Would...
• ... improve to 5-0 for the third time in program history.
• ... improve to 5-0 in Patriot League play for a second consecutive season.
• ... improve to 3-0 in the PL Central division.
• ... improve to 3-0 against the Mountain Hawks under head coach Trevor Woodruff.
• ... win its 14th-straight game, dating back to last season.
• ... improve to 45-43 in all-time meetings with the Mountain Hawks.
• ... win its sixth-consecutive game against the Mountain Hawks, dating back to 1/11/18.
• ... win its 14th-straight game over a PL opponent, dating back to last season.

Headlines
• Bucknell seeks a 5-0 start to the season for the first time since 2000-01 and the third time in program history when it takes on Lehigh on Saturday. The Bison started the season 7-0 in 1986-87. Wins over Lehigh would also give Bucknell sole possession of first place in the PL Central division.
• Bucknell boasts a league-best +26.5 scoring margin through four games and ranks ninth nationally. The 34-point win over Lafayette on Saturday was Bucknell's largest margin of victory since winning by the same advantage against Monmouth last November.
• Bucknell continues its dominance on defense this season and has given up no more than 51 points in any single game. Bucknell's scoring defense (46.0 ppg) ranks No. 1 in NCAA women's basketball. The next closest Patriot League school is Boston U., which is giving up 54.8 ppg.
• The Bison also rank fifth in the country in field goal percentage defense (.312), second in 3-point percentage defense (.193), and No. 2 in assist/turnover ratio (1.79).
• The Bison have the third-best field goal percentage (.433) in the Patriot League and rank third nationally in 3-point percentage (.455). Bucknell was above 50 percent from beyond the arc last time out for the fifth time under head coach Trevor Woodruff.
• Bucknell ranks second in the country in assist/turnover ratio (1.79).
• Bucknell made its first appearance of the season on College Insider's Mid-Major Top 25 list this week, earning a spot at No. 22. The Bison ranked No. 23 at the end of last season and reached No. 11 before the season finale in 2018-19.
• Senior guard Abby Kapp added eight more 3-pointers to her career total over the weekend, including a career-high seven in Saturday's victory. Kapp enters this weekend nine triples away from tying Molly Creamer's all-time program mark of 195. Kapp has hit at least one from beyond the arc in 11 consecutive games.
• Senior forward Tessa Brugler has scored in double figures in three of four games this season and is second on the roster with 13 points per contest. Brugler is also tied for third in the league with 8.0 rebounds per game and has the sixth-best field goal percentage (.563). Brugler earned her second double-double of the season and fifth of her career in Saturday's win at Lafayette.
• Junior guard Taylor O'Brien collected the first double-double of her career in a versatile performance in Sunday's victory over Lafayette. O'Brien eclipsed 20 points for the second time in her career on 9-of-12 shooting and grabbed 10 rebounds. She also added four assists, two steals and a block. O'Brien leads the Bison roster and is sixth in the league with 15 points per game.
• Head coach Trevor Woodruff collected the 300th NCAA win of his career with Sunday's win over the Leopards.

About the Mountain Hawks
• Lehigh is 4-0 to begin the year for a second-consecutive season. The Mountain Hawks grabbed two PL Central division victories over Lafayette during the opening weekend before beating American twice this past weekend.
• Lehigh is averaging a league-high 80.5 points per contest and has four players scoring in double figures through the first four games.
• The Mountain Hawks lead the country in 3-point field goals per game (12.3) but are fourth in the Patriot League in percentage (.353). In Monday's win over American, Lehigh tied the Patriot League record with 16 made threes on 36 attempts. The Mountain Hawks have attempted no less than 31 shots from beyond the arc in each game this season.
• Lehigh also leads the Patriot League with 19.8 assists per game.
• The Mountain Hawks are led by senior guard Mary Clougherty, who was named last week's Patriot League Player of the Week following a pair of 20-point outings against Lafayette. Clougherty is fifth in the league in scoring and first in 3-pointers per game (3.3).

Series History With Lehigh
• Bucknell is 44-43 in all-time meetings with Lehigh, dating back to 1977.
• Bucknell defeated the Mountain Hawks twice by double digits last season.
• The Bison are 23-17 at home and 19-24 in games at Lehigh.
• It's the second-consecutive season the two teams have been undefeated in league play heading into the matchup.
• Bucknell defeated Lehigh 71-50 on the road before winning 67-56 at home last season.
• Abby Kapp paced the Bison with a then-career-high 23 points on 8-of-11 shooting and six threes in last year's win at Stabler Arena. Ally Johnson also knocked down three 3-pointers as Bucknell was 11-of-19 from beyond the arc.
• Kapp was also in double figures in Bucknell's home win over Lehigh last season, hitting 7-of-12 FGs with a pair of threes.

Last Time Out
• Bucknell improved to 4-0 overall and 2-0 in the PL Central division with a pair of double-digit victories against Lafayette last weekend. Bucknell outscored the Leopards by a combined 63 points in the two wins.
• Bucknell forced 29 Leopard turnovers and allowed just 7-of-25 attempts from beyond the arc.
• The Bison connected on 56.3 percent (18-of-32) of their attempts from 3-point range in the two games and shot 48.3 percent 56-for-116 from the floor.
• Junior guard Taylor O'Brien posted her first career double-double in Sunday's win with a team-high 22 points and 10 rebounds.
• Abby Kapp led all scorers in Saturday's victory with a career-high 24 points on 8-of-11 shooting and seven threes.
• Tessa Brugler scored in double figures in both games and grabbed her fifth career double-double with 10 boards on Saturday.

Dominant Defense
• Bucknell currently leads the nation in scoring defense with just 46 points allowed per game.
• The Bison are second in the nation in 3FG% defense (.193) and are fifth in FG% defense (.312).
• Bucknell has limited its opponents to 51 points or fewer and .350 FG% or under in all four games this season.
• The Bison held teams to 50 points or fewer 14 times last season.
• Bucknell held four opponents to 40 points or fewer last season.
• Bucknell's scoring defense ranked eighth in the nation last season with 53.6 points allowed per game.

Double-Digit Victories
• 24 of Bucknell's last 28 wins have come by double digits.
• Since the start of the 2018-19 season, 46 of Bucknell's 54 wins have come by double digits.
• Bucknell's largest margin of victory was 47 vs. Coppin State (2/10/85).
• Bucknell's largest margin of victory this season was 34 vs. Lafayette (1/10/21)

Converting from the Line
• The Bison finished first in the Patriot League in free throw percentage in six of the past seven seasons -- 2013-14 (.735), 2014-15 (.740), 2016-17 (.760), 2017-18 (.747), 2018-19 (.742), 2019-20 (.747).
• Bucknell has shot over 70 percent from the line in each of the past nine seasons.
• Bucknell is currently sixth in the country with an .808 FT%.

Patriot League Success
• The Bison have gone 85-10 vs. Patriot League opponents dating back to the start of the 2015-16 season, which includes two Patriot League Tournament titles and four regular season titles.
• Bucknell also has the best overall record during that span at 130-36.

What's Different This Year
• Due to adjustments related to the COVID-19 pandemic, the 2020-21 season will look different than any other in Bucknell's history. For starters, non-conference play was prohibited, pushing the start of the season back to Jan. 2 with a modified 16-game conference schedule.
• In an effort to minimize travel, teams will generally play the same opponent on back-to-back days at opposite sites. There will be a few exceptions where two teams play at the same site on consecutive days, such as when Colgate visits Bucknell on Jan. 23-24.
• The Patriot League has been reconfigured into three divisions for this season: North (Army, Boston U., Colgate, Holy Cross), Central (Bucknell, Lafayette, Lehigh) and South (American, Loyola, Navy). As a result, Bucknell will play Lehigh and Lafayette four times each, and the Bison will not play Army, Boston U. or Holy Cross at all in the regular season.
• The Patriot League Tournament will consist of just eight teams this year instead of the normal full field of 10. The three division winners will be seeded 1-3, the division runners-up will be seeded 4-6, and the next best remaining records will be seeded 7 and 8.

Up Next
Bucknell hosts Colgate next weekend in back-to-back home games on Saturday and Sunday. Colgate is off to a 1-3 start to the season with a win over Army. Both games will tip off at 4 p.m. and will be broadcast on ESPN+. Additionally, Saturday's game will also be shown locally on Service Electric cable.

Women's Basketball Clashes with Lehigh in Battle of Unbeatens This Weekend

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Tessa Brugler

Autumn Ceppi

Ally Johnson

Abby Kapp

Taylor O'Brien

Women's Basketball Clashes with Lehigh in Battle of Unbeatens This Weekend

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Tessa Brugler

Autumn Ceppi

Ally Johnson

Abby Kapp

Taylor O'Brien

Related Videos