Saturday, January 2
Annapolis, Md.
2 p.m.
Bucknell University
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Navy
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BUCKNELL
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Navy
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Photo by: Marc Hagemeier
Navy Storms Back for 78-69 Verdict in Bucknell’s Season Opener
1/2/2021 5:10:00 PM | Men's Basketball
ANNAPOLIS, Md. – After waiting two extra months to open its 2020-21 season, the Bucknell men's basketball team ran out to a 17-point lead early in the second half, but host Navy stormed back for a 78-69 win on Saturday afternoon at Alumni Hall. Andrew Funk led the Bison with 16 points, while preseason All-Patriot League selection Cam Davis scored 19 of his game-high 26 in the second half for the Midshipmen.
The Bison were playing a bit shorthanded, as 2019-20 All-Patriot Leaguer John Meeks was one of three Bucknell players out with injuries. As a result, the Bison had three players – sophomores Xander Rice and Jake van der Heijden and freshman Andre Screen – make their first career starts, while junior Walter Ellis started for the second time.
The new-look lineup looked strong early on, as Funk and Ellis hit two 3-pointers apiece as Bucknell took an early 21-15 lead. Navy rallied for a 28-25 lead, but a three by Rice and a stick-back by van der Heijden ignited a 10-0 run. Inside three minutes to play in the half, Ellis came back on the floor with two fouls and promptly hit his third triple, then grabbed a defensive rebound and finished a driving layup at the other end for a 35-28 lead.
Bucknell led 37-33 at intermission, and then dominated the first seven minutes of the second half. Deuce Turner's first collegiate 3-pointer, followed by a Screen layup off a pick-and-roll feed from Turner and then consecutive treys by Rice and Funk helped stretch the margin to 50-39. After a Davis jumper with a toe on the arc, a fastbreak layup by Funk and a 3-pointer by van der Heijden ran it all the way up to 17 at 58-41.
After a Daniel Deaver jumper for Navy, Alex Timmerman scored from Rice's fifth assist of the day to make it 60-43 with 12:40 remaining, but that would be Bucknell's last field goal of the day.
Luke Loehr came off the Navy bench to hit consecutive 3-pointers, and that seemed to trigger a momentum shift. While a lid closed over Bucknell's basket, Navy kept chipping away. The Midshipmen took a 64-63 lead on two free throws by Richard Njoku with 4:18 left. Funk split a pair at the line to tie the game before Njoku's dunk keyed a 6-0 Navy run.
The Bison ended up missing their final 13 field-goal attempts of the day, and Navy went 8-for-8 from the foul line in the last two minutes to ice the game.
"Credit to Navy, they did a good job defensively and got us a little off-kilter," said head coach Nathan Davis about the latter part of the game. "But even with that, I thought we had some good looks that we didn't make."
Njoku tallied 13 points, Greg Summers had eight points and 11 rebounds, and Deaver chipped in with 10 of Navy's 31 bench points.
Rice finished with a career-high 13 points and Ellis added 11 for the Bison. Screen had eight points and Turner seven in their collegiate debuts, while van der Heijden logged six points, five rebounds and four assists.
Bucknell hit 10 of its first 20 from 3-point distance before missing its final eight. The Bison shot 37.9 percent overall, while Navy hit at a 48.3 percent clip. The Mids were helped by 16-for-18 accuracy at the foul line.
Navy had already played four games this season, although none since Dec. 1 after a COVID-19 pause later in the month. Bucknell was playing its latest season opener since 1938-39, when it debuted against Penn State on Jan. 11.
The two teams will turn right back around and meet again on Sunday at 6 p.m. at Sojka Pavilion. The game will be televised on CBS Sports Network.
"We had some guys log heavy minutes as did Navy, so the first thing is to make sure we get back as fresh as we possibly can," Davis said about the quick turnaround. "We will look for the little tweaks we can make between now and then. We know they are going to come up ready to play, they have a very good team and are playing with a lot of confidence."
The Bison were playing a bit shorthanded, as 2019-20 All-Patriot Leaguer John Meeks was one of three Bucknell players out with injuries. As a result, the Bison had three players – sophomores Xander Rice and Jake van der Heijden and freshman Andre Screen – make their first career starts, while junior Walter Ellis started for the second time.
The new-look lineup looked strong early on, as Funk and Ellis hit two 3-pointers apiece as Bucknell took an early 21-15 lead. Navy rallied for a 28-25 lead, but a three by Rice and a stick-back by van der Heijden ignited a 10-0 run. Inside three minutes to play in the half, Ellis came back on the floor with two fouls and promptly hit his third triple, then grabbed a defensive rebound and finished a driving layup at the other end for a 35-28 lead.
Bucknell led 37-33 at intermission, and then dominated the first seven minutes of the second half. Deuce Turner's first collegiate 3-pointer, followed by a Screen layup off a pick-and-roll feed from Turner and then consecutive treys by Rice and Funk helped stretch the margin to 50-39. After a Davis jumper with a toe on the arc, a fastbreak layup by Funk and a 3-pointer by van der Heijden ran it all the way up to 17 at 58-41.
After a Daniel Deaver jumper for Navy, Alex Timmerman scored from Rice's fifth assist of the day to make it 60-43 with 12:40 remaining, but that would be Bucknell's last field goal of the day.
Luke Loehr came off the Navy bench to hit consecutive 3-pointers, and that seemed to trigger a momentum shift. While a lid closed over Bucknell's basket, Navy kept chipping away. The Midshipmen took a 64-63 lead on two free throws by Richard Njoku with 4:18 left. Funk split a pair at the line to tie the game before Njoku's dunk keyed a 6-0 Navy run.
The Bison ended up missing their final 13 field-goal attempts of the day, and Navy went 8-for-8 from the foul line in the last two minutes to ice the game.
"Credit to Navy, they did a good job defensively and got us a little off-kilter," said head coach Nathan Davis about the latter part of the game. "But even with that, I thought we had some good looks that we didn't make."
Njoku tallied 13 points, Greg Summers had eight points and 11 rebounds, and Deaver chipped in with 10 of Navy's 31 bench points.
Rice finished with a career-high 13 points and Ellis added 11 for the Bison. Screen had eight points and Turner seven in their collegiate debuts, while van der Heijden logged six points, five rebounds and four assists.
Bucknell hit 10 of its first 20 from 3-point distance before missing its final eight. The Bison shot 37.9 percent overall, while Navy hit at a 48.3 percent clip. The Mids were helped by 16-for-18 accuracy at the foul line.
Navy had already played four games this season, although none since Dec. 1 after a COVID-19 pause later in the month. Bucknell was playing its latest season opener since 1938-39, when it debuted against Penn State on Jan. 11.
The two teams will turn right back around and meet again on Sunday at 6 p.m. at Sojka Pavilion. The game will be televised on CBS Sports Network.
"We had some guys log heavy minutes as did Navy, so the first thing is to make sure we get back as fresh as we possibly can," Davis said about the quick turnaround. "We will look for the little tweaks we can make between now and then. We know they are going to come up ready to play, they have a very good team and are playing with a lot of confidence."
Team Stats
BUCKNELL
NAVY
FG%
.379
.483
3FG%
.357
.235
FT%
.750
.889
RB
32
39
TO
11
12
STL
4
6
Game Leaders
Pts
16
FGM
4
3FGM
3
FTM
5
Pts
13
FGM
3
3FGM
2
FTM
5
Pts
11
FGM
4
3FGM
3
FTM
0
Pts
8
FGM
4
3FGM
0
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
G
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's Basketball
F
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's BasketballC
/ Men's Basketball
C
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's Basketball
F
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