Photo by: Marc Hagemeier
Men's Basketball Tips Off Postseason Play at Lafayette Saturday
3/5/2021 12:36:00 PM | Men's Basketball
LEWISBURG, Pa. -- The Bison men's basketball team returned to action after a four-week pause last weekend at American, and now the postseason has arrived. After finishing 4-2 in the Patriot League Central Division and 4-6 overall in league play, Bucknell is the No. 6 seed for the PenFed Credit Union Patriot League Tournament. That means a date with No. 3 Lafayette (9-5, 5-1 Central) in Easton in the quarterfinal round on Saturday afternoon. Â
It's been a season of starts and stops for the Bison, who like most Patriot League teams did not begin play until Jan. 2. After an 0-4 start without the services of All-Patriot League forward John Meeks, the Bison got hot in the latter part of January with four straight wins over Lehigh, thanks in large part to Meeks' 24.5 ppg. Then came the long delay, first because of positive tests within Bucknell's Tier 1 group, and then because of a campus-wide restriction on group activities due to a spike in COVID-19 cases. The Bison returned last weekend, albeit without the service of Meeks, standout freshman center Andre Screen, and two other frontcourt reserves in Malachi Rhodes and Alex Timmerman, who were out due to COVID-19 protocols. Playing with a four-guard lineup, and with forward Jake van der Heijden backing up Paul Newman at center, the Bison dropped a pair of games to the Eagles to fall to 4-6 on the season. Not including teams that have opted out of the season, Bucknell (10) has played the second-fewest games in the nation, ahead of only American (9). Â Â Â
All four of the players who missed the American game returned to practice this week and are expected to play on Saturday. Meeks earned a spot on the All-Patriot League Third Team for the second year in a row, even though he was limited to four games. The Bison were 4-0 with Meeks on the floor, 0-6 without him. He topped the 30-point mark in two of those four games and enters the postseason averaging 24.5 points and 6.3 rebounds per game. Andrew Funk was also honored this week with a second straight nod on the Academic All-Patriot League Team.
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Led by All-Patriot League picks Justin Jaworski (First Team) and E.J. Stephens (Second Team), Lafayette has enjoyed a strong season at 9-5 overall. With a 5-1 mark against Bucknell and Lehigh, the Leopards won the Patriot League Central Division and earned the No. 3 seed in the tournament. Lafayette is the second-highest-scoring team in the Patriot League at 77.2 ppg, even though the Leopards rank ninth in the conference in field-goal percentage (.434). They make up for it with good 3-point shooting (.359) and a free-throw percentage (.804) that ranks fourth in the nation. Jaworski is the league's second-leading scorer at 21.0 ppg, while Stephens ranks eighth at 16.0 ppg. Â
This is only the second time in 31 Patriot League Tournaments that Bucknell has been the No. 6 seed. The other time came in 2001, when the Bison knocked off No. 3 Colgate 75-68 in the quarterfinal round in Annapolis, Md. Bucknell is 43-24 all-time in Patriot League Tournament action, including 5-2 against Lafayette. The Bison also have two wins over the Leopards in the East Coast Conference Tournament, including one in the 1989 final. Lafayette avenged that loss 10 years later with a win over the Bison in the Patriot League Tournament final, which is the only other time these two teams have played a postseason game in Easton. Bucknell and Lafayette also played for the PL title in 2011 and 2013, and the Mike Muscala-led Bison prevailed both times to secure NCAA Tournament bids.Â
• Complete Game Notes
• 2020-21 Media Guide
• Digital Game Program
ABOUT THE GAME
What:Â #6 Bucknell (4-6, 4-2 PL Central) at #3 Lafayette (9-5, 5-1 PL Central)
Where: Kirby Sports Center, Easton, Pa.
When:Â Saturday, March 6, 2 p.m.
TV:Â Lafayette Sports Network (SNY, NBC Washington, NBC Bay Area)
Internet Stream (U.S.):Â ESPN+Â |Â Internet Stream (International):Â SIDEARM Sports
Local Radio:Â Eagle 107 (107.3 FM WEGH)
Listen Live: BucknellBison.com and Eagle107.com
Live Stats:Â GoLeopards.com
Bucknell Tentative StartersÂ
G: Xander Rice (10.5 ppg, 2.3 rpg, 3.8 apg)
G: Andrew Funk (12.8 ppg, 4.8 rpg, 1.4 apg)
G: Walter Ellis (8.5 ppg, 3.3 rpg, 1.0 apg)
F: John Meeks (24.5 ppg, 6.8 rpg, 2.0 apg)
C: Paul Newman (5.2 ppg, 5.0 rpg, 0.9 bpg)
With a Win over Lafayette, Bucknell Would ... Â
Year   Seed   Results
1991Â Â Â 4Â Â Â def. Army 67-49; lost Fordham 82-76
1992Â Â Â 2Â Â Â def. Army 74-55; def. Holy Cross 86-77; lost Fordham 70-65
1993Â Â Â 1Â Â Â def. Lehigh 69-65; def. Colgate 75-73; lost Holy Cross 98-73
1994Â Â Â 5Â Â Â lost Holy Cross 96-91
1995Â Â Â 2Â Â Â lost Army 94-78
1996Â Â Â 4Â Â Â def. Lafayette 56-55; lost Colgate 67-61
1997Â Â Â 2Â Â Â def. Lehigh 84-54; def. Colgate 71-58; lost Navy 76-75
1998Â Â Â 3Â Â Â def. Holy Cross 60-56; lost Navy 80-61
1999Â Â Â 3Â Â Â def. Holy Cross 76-52; def. Lehigh 58-50; lost Lafayette 67-63
2000Â Â Â 3Â Â Â lost Lehigh 73-62
2001Â Â Â 6Â Â Â def. Colgate 75-68; lost Navy 88-64
2002Â Â Â 3Â Â Â def. Army 70-59; lost Holy Cross 64-57
2003Â Â Â 5Â Â Â def. Lehigh 52-47; lost Holy Cross 75-50
2004Â Â Â 4Â Â Â def. Holy Cross 66-60; lost Lehigh 60-45
2005Â Â Â 2Â Â Â def. Lafayette 70-34; def. American 53-35; def. Holy Cross 61-57
2006Â Â Â 1Â Â Â def. Army 59-47; def. American 64-50; def. Holy Cross 74-59
2007Â Â Â 2Â Â Â def. Navy 62-43; def. Army 68-47; lost Holy Cross 74-66
2008Â Â Â 7Â Â Â def. Navy 87-86 (3OT); lost Colgate 54-40
2009Â Â Â 7Â Â Â lost Holy Cross 75-56
2010Â Â Â 2Â Â Â lost Holy Cross 67-64
2011Â Â Â 1Â Â Â def. Army 78-51; def. Lehigh 66-64; def. Lafayette 72-57
2012Â Â Â 1Â Â Â def. Navy 87-63; def. Lafayette 79-52; lost Lehigh 82-77
2013Â Â Â 1Â Â Â def. Navy 58-42; def. Army 78-70; def. Lafayette 64-56 Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â
2014Â Â Â 4Â Â Â lost 72-71 Army
2015Â Â Â 1Â Â Â def. Holy Cross 90-83 (OT); lost Lafayette 80-74
2016Â Â Â 1Â Â Â lost Holy Cross 77-72 (2OT)
2017Â Â Â 1Â Â Â def. Army 78-62; def. Navy 70-65; def. Lehigh 81-65Â Â Â
2018Â Â Â 1Â Â Â def. Loyola 83-78; def. Boston U. 90-59; def. Colgate 83-54
2019Â Â Â 2Â Â Â def. Holy Cross 77-65; def. Lehigh 97-75; lost Colgate 94-80 Â Â Â Â Â
2020Â Â Â 7Â Â Â def. Holy Cross 65-62; def. American 64-59; lost Boston U. 64-61 Â
2021   6   vs. Lafayette         Â
PL TOURNAMENT BY OPPONENT
American   3-0
Army     8-2
Boston U.  1-1
Colgate   4-3
Fordham    0-2
Navy    5-3
Holy Cross  9-8
Lafayette  5-2
Lehigh   7-3  Â
Loyola   1-0
Numbers worth NotingÂ
In wins   .398   .273
In losses  .273   .370
  Â
Last Time Out
It's been a season of starts and stops for the Bison, who like most Patriot League teams did not begin play until Jan. 2. After an 0-4 start without the services of All-Patriot League forward John Meeks, the Bison got hot in the latter part of January with four straight wins over Lehigh, thanks in large part to Meeks' 24.5 ppg. Then came the long delay, first because of positive tests within Bucknell's Tier 1 group, and then because of a campus-wide restriction on group activities due to a spike in COVID-19 cases. The Bison returned last weekend, albeit without the service of Meeks, standout freshman center Andre Screen, and two other frontcourt reserves in Malachi Rhodes and Alex Timmerman, who were out due to COVID-19 protocols. Playing with a four-guard lineup, and with forward Jake van der Heijden backing up Paul Newman at center, the Bison dropped a pair of games to the Eagles to fall to 4-6 on the season. Not including teams that have opted out of the season, Bucknell (10) has played the second-fewest games in the nation, ahead of only American (9). Â Â Â
All four of the players who missed the American game returned to practice this week and are expected to play on Saturday. Meeks earned a spot on the All-Patriot League Third Team for the second year in a row, even though he was limited to four games. The Bison were 4-0 with Meeks on the floor, 0-6 without him. He topped the 30-point mark in two of those four games and enters the postseason averaging 24.5 points and 6.3 rebounds per game. Andrew Funk was also honored this week with a second straight nod on the Academic All-Patriot League Team.
 Â
Led by All-Patriot League picks Justin Jaworski (First Team) and E.J. Stephens (Second Team), Lafayette has enjoyed a strong season at 9-5 overall. With a 5-1 mark against Bucknell and Lehigh, the Leopards won the Patriot League Central Division and earned the No. 3 seed in the tournament. Lafayette is the second-highest-scoring team in the Patriot League at 77.2 ppg, even though the Leopards rank ninth in the conference in field-goal percentage (.434). They make up for it with good 3-point shooting (.359) and a free-throw percentage (.804) that ranks fourth in the nation. Jaworski is the league's second-leading scorer at 21.0 ppg, while Stephens ranks eighth at 16.0 ppg. Â
This is only the second time in 31 Patriot League Tournaments that Bucknell has been the No. 6 seed. The other time came in 2001, when the Bison knocked off No. 3 Colgate 75-68 in the quarterfinal round in Annapolis, Md. Bucknell is 43-24 all-time in Patriot League Tournament action, including 5-2 against Lafayette. The Bison also have two wins over the Leopards in the East Coast Conference Tournament, including one in the 1989 final. Lafayette avenged that loss 10 years later with a win over the Bison in the Patriot League Tournament final, which is the only other time these two teams have played a postseason game in Easton. Bucknell and Lafayette also played for the PL title in 2011 and 2013, and the Mike Muscala-led Bison prevailed both times to secure NCAA Tournament bids.Â
• Complete Game Notes
• 2020-21 Media Guide
• Digital Game Program
ABOUT THE GAME
What:Â #6 Bucknell (4-6, 4-2 PL Central) at #3 Lafayette (9-5, 5-1 PL Central)
Where: Kirby Sports Center, Easton, Pa.
When:Â Saturday, March 6, 2 p.m.
TV:Â Lafayette Sports Network (SNY, NBC Washington, NBC Bay Area)
Internet Stream (U.S.):Â ESPN+Â |Â Internet Stream (International):Â SIDEARM Sports
Local Radio:Â Eagle 107 (107.3 FM WEGH)
Listen Live: BucknellBison.com and Eagle107.com
Live Stats:Â GoLeopards.com
Bucknell Tentative StartersÂ
G: Xander Rice (10.5 ppg, 2.3 rpg, 3.8 apg)
G: Andrew Funk (12.8 ppg, 4.8 rpg, 1.4 apg)
G: Walter Ellis (8.5 ppg, 3.3 rpg, 1.0 apg)
F: John Meeks (24.5 ppg, 6.8 rpg, 2.0 apg)
C: Paul Newman (5.2 ppg, 5.0 rpg, 0.9 bpg)
With a Win over Lafayette, Bucknell Would ... Â
- ... advance to the Patriot League Tournament semifinals and play the Colgate-Boston University winner on Wednesday.
- ... reach the semifinal round for the 24th time in 31 years in the Patriot League.
- ... improve to 6-2 against Lafayette in the Patriot League Tournament and 8-2 in all postseason games.Â
- ... snap a three-game series losing streak to the Leopards, which is the longest since a six-game skid from 1998-2000.
- ... improve to 3-3 on the road this season.
- ... give head coach Nathan Davis his 108th victory as Bucknell's head coach and bring him within two of Malcolm Musser for fourth on the program's all-time wins list.
- Saturday's Bucknell-Lafayette game will stream live on ESPN+, with Gary Laubach and John Leone on the call. The game will also be televised on SNY, NBC Washington and NBC Bay Area via the Lafayette Sports Network.
- The game can be heard in the Susquehanna Valley on the radio on Eagle 107 (WEGH 107.3 FM), with Doug Birdsong now in his 21st season as play-by-play announcer. The pregame show begins 30 minutes before tip-off both days. Â
- The audio feed is also available online free of charge via BucknellBison.com and Eagle107.com.Â
- Live statistics can be accessed via GoLeopards.com.
- Follow @Bucknell_MBB for in-game updates on Twitter.Â
- When the Patriot League announced a modified schedule for the 2020-21 season, plans were made for an eight-team PenFed Credit Union Patriot League Tournament, rather than the traditional 10-team, full-field event as in years past. On Feb. 25, the league announced that it would revert to the 10-team field due to a wide disparity in number of games played because of various COVID-related pauses.Â
- The league also announced an adjustment in how the tournament will be seeded. As previously planned, the three divisional winners were seeded 1-3 based on overall Patriot League winning percentage. The 4-10 Â seeds were then based on their overall PL winning percentage. The prior seeding model granted the divisional runners-up the 4-6 spots.Â
- Bucknell has an all-time record of 43-24 (.642) in 30 Patriot League Tournaments. The Bison have reached the championship game a league-record 13 times, including wins in 2005, 2006, 2011, 2013, 2017 and 2018, and reached at least the semifinals in 23 of the first 30 years.Â
- Bucknell has been seeded 6th or lower only four other times, and in three of those years the Bison won at least one tournament game.Â
Year   Seed   Results
1991Â Â Â 4Â Â Â def. Army 67-49; lost Fordham 82-76
1992Â Â Â 2Â Â Â def. Army 74-55; def. Holy Cross 86-77; lost Fordham 70-65
1993Â Â Â 1Â Â Â def. Lehigh 69-65; def. Colgate 75-73; lost Holy Cross 98-73
1994Â Â Â 5Â Â Â lost Holy Cross 96-91
1995Â Â Â 2Â Â Â lost Army 94-78
1996Â Â Â 4Â Â Â def. Lafayette 56-55; lost Colgate 67-61
1997Â Â Â 2Â Â Â def. Lehigh 84-54; def. Colgate 71-58; lost Navy 76-75
1998Â Â Â 3Â Â Â def. Holy Cross 60-56; lost Navy 80-61
1999Â Â Â 3Â Â Â def. Holy Cross 76-52; def. Lehigh 58-50; lost Lafayette 67-63
2000Â Â Â 3Â Â Â lost Lehigh 73-62
2001Â Â Â 6Â Â Â def. Colgate 75-68; lost Navy 88-64
2002Â Â Â 3Â Â Â def. Army 70-59; lost Holy Cross 64-57
2003Â Â Â 5Â Â Â def. Lehigh 52-47; lost Holy Cross 75-50
2004Â Â Â 4Â Â Â def. Holy Cross 66-60; lost Lehigh 60-45
2005Â Â Â 2Â Â Â def. Lafayette 70-34; def. American 53-35; def. Holy Cross 61-57
2006Â Â Â 1Â Â Â def. Army 59-47; def. American 64-50; def. Holy Cross 74-59
2007Â Â Â 2Â Â Â def. Navy 62-43; def. Army 68-47; lost Holy Cross 74-66
2008Â Â Â 7Â Â Â def. Navy 87-86 (3OT); lost Colgate 54-40
2009Â Â Â 7Â Â Â lost Holy Cross 75-56
2010Â Â Â 2Â Â Â lost Holy Cross 67-64
2011Â Â Â 1Â Â Â def. Army 78-51; def. Lehigh 66-64; def. Lafayette 72-57
2012Â Â Â 1Â Â Â def. Navy 87-63; def. Lafayette 79-52; lost Lehigh 82-77
2013Â Â Â 1Â Â Â def. Navy 58-42; def. Army 78-70; def. Lafayette 64-56 Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â
2014Â Â Â 4Â Â Â lost 72-71 Army
2015Â Â Â 1Â Â Â def. Holy Cross 90-83 (OT); lost Lafayette 80-74
2016Â Â Â 1Â Â Â lost Holy Cross 77-72 (2OT)
2017Â Â Â 1Â Â Â def. Army 78-62; def. Navy 70-65; def. Lehigh 81-65Â Â Â
2018Â Â Â 1Â Â Â def. Loyola 83-78; def. Boston U. 90-59; def. Colgate 83-54
2019Â Â Â 2Â Â Â def. Holy Cross 77-65; def. Lehigh 97-75; lost Colgate 94-80 Â Â Â Â Â
2020Â Â Â 7Â Â Â def. Holy Cross 65-62; def. American 64-59; lost Boston U. 64-61 Â
2021   6   vs. Lafayette         Â
PL TOURNAMENT BY OPPONENT
American   3-0
Army     8-2
Boston U.  1-1
Colgate   4-3
Fordham    0-2
Navy    5-3
Holy Cross  9-8
Lafayette  5-2
Lehigh   7-3  Â
Loyola   1-0
Numbers worth NotingÂ
- Xander Rice went 7-for-7 from the field against American on Sunday, upping his season FG% to 51.5%. That is the highest mark among all Patriot League guards.
- Rice has 38 assists and only 14 turnovers on the season, and his 2.71 assist-to-turnover ratio ranks second in the Patriot League and 26th in the nation.
- Bucknell's guards are 103-for-127 (.811) from the foul line this season.Â
- Freshman center Andre Screen has blocked at least one shot in all but one of his games this season.Â
- John Meeks is only the second Bison in team history to score 30+ points twice in a three-game span, joining Zach Thomas, who did it in 2018.Â
- Paul Newman is 12-for-17 from the field in his last five games, and he has 23 rebounds in his last three.Â
- Walter Ellis is in the midst of one of the best scoring spells of his career. He has reached double figures in four straight games for the first time and is 19-for-31 (.612) from the field in that span.
- Scoring and defending at the 3-point arc has been a key factor in Bucknell's success this year.
In wins   .398   .273
In losses  .273   .370
  Â
Last Time Out
- After a four-week pause, the Bison returned to action last week and dropped a pair of games to American, 78-71 at home and 81-68 in D.C.Â
- Despite missing four frontcourt players, including top scorer John Meeks, the Bison took the game right down to the final minute but two big offensive rebounds in a one-possession game proved key for the Eagles, who defeated the Bison at Sojka Pavilion for only the third time. Freshman Deuce Turner had a big game off the bench for Bucknell with 21 points. Jamir Harris led AU with 19, including four big free throws in the final seconds. Â
- American broke open a three-point game with a 16-3 run early in the second half to pull away in the rematch Sunday at Bender Arena. Harris again led AU with 24 points, and the Eagles shot 64.0% in the second half and 55.4% overall, becoming the first team all season to top 50% against Bucknell. Xander Rice made all seven of his attempts and led the Bison with 16 points.
- Bucknell and Lafayette have met 171 times previously, making the Leopards Bucknell's second most-played opponent (the Bison have played Lehigh 180 times). Since the series began in 1915, Lafayette leads 92-79.
- Since the start of Patriot League play in 1990-91, however, Bucknell has won 50 of 70 meetings.
- Lafayette won 33 of the first 37 meetings and led the series 60-14 at one point.
- Bucknell had been 15-0 all-time against Lafayette in Sojka Pavilion until the Leopards posted their first win there in 2013-14. The Bison are now 20-4 against Lafayette in Sojka Pavilion and 28-7 against the Leopards in Lewisburg going back to the Patriot League's first season.
- The Bison and Leopards have met in a conference championship game four times, with Bucknell winning three of those. The Bison defeated Lafayette 71-65 in the 1989 East Coast Conference final in Towson, Md., and they also won Patriot League championship games in Sojka Pavilion in 2011 (72-57) and 2013 (64-56). Lafayette claimed the 1999 Patriot League title with a 67-63 win over the Bison in Easton.
- Bucknell had won nine straight against Lafayette until the Leopards prevailed 65-62 at Sojka Pavilion last Feb. 3. Lafayette's current three-game series winning streak is its longest since a six-game run from 1998-2000.
- The Leopards won both games of a home-and-home set back on Jan. 9-10, which was the second weekend of the season. It was all Lafayette in the first leg at Sojka Pavilion, as the Leopards prevailed 83-60 behind 18 points from E.J. Stephens. Andrew Funk led Bucknell with 15.
- The rematch the following day was much closer, but the Bison could not keep up with Lafayette's hot 3-point shooting. The Leopards went 11-for-26 from the arc, while Bucknell was 5-for-19 in an 87-76 setback. Stephens was sensational off the bench with 31 points. Xander Rice poured in a career-high 23 for the Bison.Â
- Bucknell is 306-138 (.689) all-time in Patriot League regular-season games, the best record of any league team. The Bison have finished at least .500 in PL play 25 times in 31 Patriot League seasons.
- Bucknell won three straight Patriot League regular-season titles from 2011-13, becoming the first team in league history to accomplish that feat. The Bison had won five in a row and eight of the previous nine before finishing T-6th last season.
- Bucknell has made nine Patriot League Tournament appearances as the No. 1 seed and seven as the No. 2 seed.
- Bucknell won Patriot League Tournament titles in 2005, 2006, 2011, 2013, 2017 and 2018. The Bison have made it to the semifinals 23 times and to the championship game 13 times in the league's first 30 years.Â
- The Bison are the only team to go unbeaten in league play in a season (14-0 in 2006).Â
- John Meeks earned his first All-Patriot League citation last season with a Third Team nod, and he repeated as a Third Team honoree this year. Â
- Andrew Funk also earned postseason honors with a spot on the five-man Academic All-Patriot League Team for the second year in a row. Funk boasts a 3.65 GPA in accounting and financial management. His selection gives Bucknell at least one member of the Academic All-Patriot League Team in 10 of the 11 years since the award's inception, and he joins Mike Muscala, Bryson Johnson, Nana Foulland and Kimbal Mackenzie as Bison players to be honored more than once.
Players Mentioned
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