Wednesday, November 17
Lewisburg, Pa.
7 p.m.
Bucknell University
1-2,0-0Patriot
81
vs
74
Rider
2-2,0-0MAAC
1
2
F
Rider
35
39
74
Bucknell
33
48
81
Photo by: Lianne Garrahan
Bucknell Men’s Basketball Gets in Win Column, 81-74 Over Rider
11/17/2021 9:12:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Xander Rice (23 points), Andre Screen (20), and Malachi Rhodes (11) all with career-highs in scoring
LEWISBURG, Pa - An all-around team effort propelled the Bucknell men's basketball team to its first win of the season, an 81-74 victory over Rider on Wednesday night at Sojka Pavilion. The Bison defense held the Broncs to 34.9 percent shooting (29-for-83) for the game, including 16.1% (5-for-31) from three, and offensively Bucknell received career highs in scoring from Xander Rice (23), Andre Screen (20) and Malachi Rhodes (11).
It was a test of resiliency for the Bison (1-2), who built a 15-point first-half lead, only to see Rider (2-2) close the half on a 19-2 run, with a buzzer-beating 3-pointer by Sedrick Altman giving the Broncs a 35-33 lead.
Andrew Funk, coming off a career-best 32-point game against Penn on Sunday, was held scoreless in the first half but opened the second stanza with a 3-pointer. The two teams alternated buckets for the first six minutes of the half, but the game changed when Rhodes checked into the game.
The junior forward entered with 16:08 left, and he never came out of the game after that. Rhodes was a stalwart defensively and on the glass, and at the offensive end he had two assists, he made two free throws, he finished a layup in transition, and he swished a three from the right corner that gave the Bison a 58-47 lead with 8:27 to go.
Bucknell still led by 11 at 67-56 after Screen made both ends of a 1-and-1 with 5:04 to go, and the Bison had to come up with another response after a quick flurry by Rider. Dwight Murray Jr., who piled up 30 points and 13 rebounds in the game, hit a 3-pointer and then Altman stole the inbounds pass and laid it in to bring the Broncs within 67-61 with 4:15 still to play.
Rice answered with one of the biggest buckets of the night, splitting two defenders on the way to a basket for a layup. After a defensive stop, Screen rebounded a missed 3-pointer and stuck it back in to restore a double-digit margin at 71-61 with 2:45 to go.
Funk beat the shot clock with a dagger 3-pointer to make it 75-65 with 51 seconds left, and Elvin Edmonds (2-2) and Rice (4-4) combined to make six straight free throws to seal the win.
"I'm very happy for our guys, who have worked so hard but just hadn't yet been rewarded with a victory," said head coach Nathan Davis. "I thought we played very well at times against N.C. State and Penn, but we just couldn't overcome some mistakes. Tonight the guys showed tremendous poise, especially after Rider made that big run to end the half."
The Bison built an early cushion with a 13-2 run, capped by a Rice 3-pointer, for a 15-6 lead seven minutes in. Screen made a jump-hook in the lane and Rice stepped behind a screen for another three to make it 20-8.
Alex Timmerman had a dominant stretch later in the half, scoring six points in 55 seconds off a layup and four free throws. That helped the Bison take their largest lead of 15 points, but Rider made a big run to get back in the game.
Corey McKeithan started it with a 3-point play around the under-four media timeout. McKeithan then ended Rider's 0-for-11 start from the arc, and after a Screen layup, Murray converted a 3-point play on the way to seven straight points. A trey by Allen Powell and then Altman's buzzer-beater made it 13 straight points to end the half for the Broncs.
A big story for the Bison was the ability of Bucknell's big men to get Rider's bigs in foul trouble. Screen (6), Timmerman (5) and Rhodes (3) combined to draw 14 fouls. Two Broncs forwards fouled out and another finished with four fouls in 14 minutes.
The Bison shot 49.1% (27-for-55) from the field, including 10-for-26 (38.5%) from behind the arc, while making 77.3% (17-for-22) of its free throws. Rice tied his career-high with 23 points and four made threes, while Screen added eight rebounds to his 20 points. Rhodes set career-highs in points (11), rebounds (7), assists (2) and blocks (2) in 24 minutes off the bench. Timmerman added six points and seven rebounds in 13 productive minutes in relief of Screen, and freshman Elvin Edmonds IV had another solid night with seven points and four assists.
Murray had a huge night for Rider with his 30 points, 13 rebounds, four assists and three steals, but he was the team's only player to score in double figures. The Bison contained Rider's leading point-producer, Dimencio Vaughn, keeping him scoreless on 0-for-8 shooting. Vaughn came in averaging 16.0 points per game.
Rider finished with a 45-40 rebounding edge thanks to a wide disparity on the offensive glass. The Broncs grabbed 19 of their own misses, leading to a 17-2 edge in second-chance points.
These two teams could meet again next week in Cancun, Mexico. But first the Bison head to Illinois State on Saturday in a Cancun Challenge campus-site game. Next Tuesday, Bucknell takes on Mercer in the first of two games in Mexico, and the Bison would face either Rider or Middle Tennessee State in the Mayan Division championship or consolation game the following day.
Game Highlights:
Postgame Press Conference:
Photo Gallery:
Gallery: (11-17-2021) Men's Basketball vs. Rider
It was a test of resiliency for the Bison (1-2), who built a 15-point first-half lead, only to see Rider (2-2) close the half on a 19-2 run, with a buzzer-beating 3-pointer by Sedrick Altman giving the Broncs a 35-33 lead.
Andrew Funk, coming off a career-best 32-point game against Penn on Sunday, was held scoreless in the first half but opened the second stanza with a 3-pointer. The two teams alternated buckets for the first six minutes of the half, but the game changed when Rhodes checked into the game.
The junior forward entered with 16:08 left, and he never came out of the game after that. Rhodes was a stalwart defensively and on the glass, and at the offensive end he had two assists, he made two free throws, he finished a layup in transition, and he swished a three from the right corner that gave the Bison a 58-47 lead with 8:27 to go.
Bucknell still led by 11 at 67-56 after Screen made both ends of a 1-and-1 with 5:04 to go, and the Bison had to come up with another response after a quick flurry by Rider. Dwight Murray Jr., who piled up 30 points and 13 rebounds in the game, hit a 3-pointer and then Altman stole the inbounds pass and laid it in to bring the Broncs within 67-61 with 4:15 still to play.
Rice answered with one of the biggest buckets of the night, splitting two defenders on the way to a basket for a layup. After a defensive stop, Screen rebounded a missed 3-pointer and stuck it back in to restore a double-digit margin at 71-61 with 2:45 to go.
Funk beat the shot clock with a dagger 3-pointer to make it 75-65 with 51 seconds left, and Elvin Edmonds (2-2) and Rice (4-4) combined to make six straight free throws to seal the win.
"I'm very happy for our guys, who have worked so hard but just hadn't yet been rewarded with a victory," said head coach Nathan Davis. "I thought we played very well at times against N.C. State and Penn, but we just couldn't overcome some mistakes. Tonight the guys showed tremendous poise, especially after Rider made that big run to end the half."
The Bison built an early cushion with a 13-2 run, capped by a Rice 3-pointer, for a 15-6 lead seven minutes in. Screen made a jump-hook in the lane and Rice stepped behind a screen for another three to make it 20-8.
Alex Timmerman had a dominant stretch later in the half, scoring six points in 55 seconds off a layup and four free throws. That helped the Bison take their largest lead of 15 points, but Rider made a big run to get back in the game.
Corey McKeithan started it with a 3-point play around the under-four media timeout. McKeithan then ended Rider's 0-for-11 start from the arc, and after a Screen layup, Murray converted a 3-point play on the way to seven straight points. A trey by Allen Powell and then Altman's buzzer-beater made it 13 straight points to end the half for the Broncs.
A big story for the Bison was the ability of Bucknell's big men to get Rider's bigs in foul trouble. Screen (6), Timmerman (5) and Rhodes (3) combined to draw 14 fouls. Two Broncs forwards fouled out and another finished with four fouls in 14 minutes.
The Bison shot 49.1% (27-for-55) from the field, including 10-for-26 (38.5%) from behind the arc, while making 77.3% (17-for-22) of its free throws. Rice tied his career-high with 23 points and four made threes, while Screen added eight rebounds to his 20 points. Rhodes set career-highs in points (11), rebounds (7), assists (2) and blocks (2) in 24 minutes off the bench. Timmerman added six points and seven rebounds in 13 productive minutes in relief of Screen, and freshman Elvin Edmonds IV had another solid night with seven points and four assists.
Murray had a huge night for Rider with his 30 points, 13 rebounds, four assists and three steals, but he was the team's only player to score in double figures. The Bison contained Rider's leading point-producer, Dimencio Vaughn, keeping him scoreless on 0-for-8 shooting. Vaughn came in averaging 16.0 points per game.
Rider finished with a 45-40 rebounding edge thanks to a wide disparity on the offensive glass. The Broncs grabbed 19 of their own misses, leading to a 17-2 edge in second-chance points.
These two teams could meet again next week in Cancun, Mexico. But first the Bison head to Illinois State on Saturday in a Cancun Challenge campus-site game. Next Tuesday, Bucknell takes on Mercer in the first of two games in Mexico, and the Bison would face either Rider or Middle Tennessee State in the Mayan Division championship or consolation game the following day.
Game Highlights:
Postgame Press Conference:
Photo Gallery:
Team Stats
Rider
Buck
FG%
.349
.491
3FG%
.161
.385
FT%
.917
.773
RB
45
40
TO
8
14
STL
10
2
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
23
FGM
7
3FGM
4
FTM
5
Pts
20
FGM
8
3FGM
0
FTM
4
Pts
11
FGM
4
3FGM
1
FTM
2
Pts
7
FGM
2
3FGM
1
FTM
2
Players Mentioned
G
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's BasketballF
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's BasketballC
/ Men's Basketball
C
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