Bucknell University
North Dakota
Women's Basketball to Play at TD Bank Classic in Burlington, Vt.
11/26/2021 3:06:00 PM | Women's Basketball
LEWISBURG, Pa. – Bucknell women's basketball visits Burlington, Vt. this weekend to compete at the annual TD Bank Classic tournament, hosted by the University of Vermont. The Bison will see North Dakota in their first game on Saturday and either Brown or Vermont on Sunday.
The Bison have been particularly successful in Thanksgiving week tournaments in recent history. Bucknell pulled out wins over Howard and Cincinnati during head coach Trevor Woodruff's first season at the Puerto Rico Clasico, and in 2018-19 the team went 3-0 at the Brown Turkey Tip-off. Bucknell has faced Brown and Vermont in Thanksgiving tournaments before, and Saturday will be its first-ever meeting with the Fighting Hawks.
Bucknell is also looking to win back-to-back games for the first time this season, coming off a victory against Iona on Tuesday.
• 2021-22 Season Preview
• Digital Program
• Game Notes
TD Bank Classic
Game One
What: Bucknell (2-2, 0-0 PL) vs. North Dakota (1-4, 0-0 SL)
When: Saturday, Nov. 27 at 3 p.m.
Where: Patrick Gym – Burlington, Vt.
Streaming: ESPN3
Radio: 90.5 WVBU
Live Statistics: UVMAthletics.com
Game Two
What: Bucknell (2-2, 0-0 PL) vs. TBD (Brown or Vermont)
When: Sunday, Nov. 28 at 11 a.m. or 2 p.m.
Where: Patrick Gym – Burlington, Vt.
Streaming: TBA
Radio: 90.5 WVBU
Live Statistics: UVMAthletics.com
Last Game's Starters
Sr./G: Marly Walls (8.5 ppg, 3.5 rpg, 1.3 apg)
Sr./G: Taylor O'Brien (15.8 ppg, 6.0 rpg, 2.8 spg)
So./G: Julie Kulesza (4.0 ppg, 0.3 rpg, 0.8 apg)
Fr./G: Cecelia Collins (10.0 ppg, 3.8 rpg, 0.5 apg)
Jr./F: Emma Shaffer (3.8 ppg, 3.8 rpg, 1.0 apg)
With a win over North Dakota, Bucknell would...
• improve to 3-2 on the season.
• secure a spot in the tournament's championship game on Sunday at 2 p.m.
• improve to 1-0 in the all-time series against North Dakota.
• collect back-to-back victories for the first time this season.
• improve to 36-9 overall under head coach Trevor Woodruff.
• move to 17-7 in road/neutral site games under head coach Trevor Woodruff.
Headlines
• The Bison head to Burlington, Vt. this weekend to take part in the annual TD Bank Classic, hosted by the Vermont Catamounts. Bucknell plays its first-ever matchup with North Dakota on Saturday. With a win, the Bison will play in the championship game on Sunday against the winner of the Brown-Vermont matchup. The other two teams play in a consolation game Sunday morning.
• The series history is sparse between Bucknell and the other three teams attending this weekend. Bucknell has seen Brown twice and Vermont once over the team's 49-year history. Two of the three times Bucknell has matched up with the opponents have been at Thanksgiving tournaments.
• Bucknell is 5-0 in Thanksgiving Tournaments over the past three seasons.
• Saturday and Sunday mark the fifth and sixth road/neutral site games Bucknell has played to begin the season. It's the longest the team has gone without a home game to begin a season in program history, and it's the longest road swing since the 1998-99 team played nine in a row away from its home court.
• Bucknell is 2-2 through its first four games and is seeking back-to-back victories for the first time this season. Most recently, the Bison defeated Iona 55-48 on Tuesday, Nov. 23.
• Senior Taylor O'Brien continues to lead the Bison offense with her 15.8 points per game, which rank fifth in the Patriot League. She's scored in double figures in 11 consecutive games. O'Brien also leads the Bison in rebounding, assists and steals.
• Rookie guard Cecelia Collins is also averaging double-digit points this season (10.0). She led Bucknell in scoring in the Iona win with a season-high 16 points. Her .467 field goal percentage is also the highest on the roster.
• Senior Marly Walls and junior Carly Krsul are tied for third on the team with 8.5 points per game.
• A large part of Bucknell's success at Iona came at the free throw line, where the Bison went 22-for-27 (.815). As a team, Bucknell ranks 10th in the nation in free throw percentage (.831) and first in the conference. The Bison finished sixth nationally in the category last season and have finished atop the Patriot League every season under head coach Trevor Woodruff. O'Brien's 11 made free throws at Iona were the most in a single game by a Bison since Nov. 25, 2018.
• Bucknell continues to thrive defensively under Woodruff. The Bison are currently second in the Patriot League in scoring defense (58.3). Only Ohio State has scored 60 or more on the Bison this season.
• The Bison played a conference-only schedule last season due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Bucknell faced just three different opponents due to cancelations and posted an undefeated regular season (8-0) for the first time in program history. Bucknell fell to eventual-champion Lehigh in the Patriot League semifinals, snapping an 18-game winning streak that dated back to 2019-20. The Bison previously defeated the Mountain Hawks in all four regular season meetings.
• Bucknell finished among the top 3 in the Patriot League in a number of statistical categories last season, including scoring offense, scoring defense, scoring margin, rebounding margin, and more. Additionally, the Bison ranked second in the nation in assist/turnover ratio, fifth in turnovers, sixth in free-throw percentage and first in turnovers per game.
• Bucknell has seen some of its most successful seasons in program history over recent years, including five first-place regular season finishes and two Patriot League Championship titles in the last seven seasons. Bucknell has finished atop the conference in the regular season in each of the last three, going 61-14 overall during that stretch.
• Bison head coach Trevor Woodruff is in his third season with the team, and he was named the Patriot League Coach of the Year in each of his first two. Bucknell has gone 24-2 in Patriot League play under his direction.
• Bucknell lost four starters to graduation in the spring and is entering the 2021-22 season with seven underclassmen. Bucknell's most decorated returner, Taylor O'Brien, was a First Team All-Patriot League selection last season after finishing fourth in the conference in scoring with 16.3 points per game. She was also second on the roster in rebounding.
Bucknell in Thanksgiving Tournaments
• Bucknell is 5-0 over its last two Thanksgiving Tournaments.
• The Bison defeated both Howard and Cincinnati at the 2019 Puerto Rico Clasico.
• In 2018, Bucknell won all three of its matchups at the Brown Turkey Tip-Off, defeating UMass, Fairfield and Brown in Providence, R.I.
• Bucknell's only meeting with Vermont was played at the Pennsylvania Thanksgiving Classic in 1986.
Scouting North Dakota/Series History
• North Dakota is 1-4 entering the weekend tournament, coming off its first victory of the season against Montana State. The Fighting Hawks were picked ninth in the Summit League preseason poll following a 2-19 season last year.
• The Fighting Hawks are powered by senior guard Claire Orth, who leads the team in steals, blocks and scoring. Meanwhile, junior guard Kacie Borowicz played her first game of the season against Montana State and scored 33 points, 20 of which came from the free throw line.
• North Dakota is led by second-year head coach Mallory Bernhard, who owns a 3-22 overall record.
• Bucknell has never faced the Fighting Hawks. It will also be the Bison's first matchup with a Summit League opponent.
Scouting Brown/Series History
• Brown is 2-4 overall, most recently defeating Hartford on the road on Tuesday, Nov. 23. It was picked to finish last in the Ivy League preseason poll. The Ivy League did not compete last season.
• Brown sophomore Kyla Jones leads the team with 12.8 points and 2.0 assists per game. Rookie guard Isabella Mauricio is also averaging double figures.
• Brown's head coach is former Bucknell women's basketball player Monique LeBlanc, who was a two-time team captain and helped lead the Bison to their first-ever NCAA tournament appearance in 2002. LeBlanc is in her second season at Brown.
• Bucknell and Brown are tied 1-1 in the all-time series, which began with a Bears victory in 1996. The two teams played as recently as 2018 when they met at the Brown Turkey Tip-Off tournament. The Bison picked up a 91-78 win as they shot better than 50 percent for the game.
• Bucknell is also 31-24 all-time against Ivy League opponents.
Scouting Vermont/Series History
• The hosting Catamounts are 1-3 to begin the season and have already played two Patriot League opponents, losing to both American and Navy. They were picked fourth in the America East preseason poll. Vermont went 4-2 last year during the truncated season.
• Sophomore forward Sarah Olson ranks sixth in the conference with 13.5 points per game this season. She's scored in double figures in three of four games, including a season-high 20 last game vs. Navy.
• Vermont head coach Alisa Kresge is in her fourth season with the team and has a 28-41 record.
• Bucknell and Vermont met in the 1986-87 season opener, two days after Thanksgiving Day at the Pennsylvania Thanksgiving Classic. Bucknell came out on top, 94-81.
Up Next
Bucknell finally returns to Sojka Pavilion for its home opener on Wednesday, Dec. 1. Saint Francis will visit Lewisburg for a 6 p.m. tip. The Bison will be playing in front of fans in Sojka for the first time in 632 days. For tickets, visit Bucknell.UniversityTickets.com, or call 570-577-1000.
