Sunday, January 16
Washington, D.C.
2 p.m.
Bucknell University
at
American
Photo by: Marc Hagemeier
Men's Basketball Set for Sunday Trip to D.C. to Face American
1/15/2022 10:30:00 AM | Men's Basketball
AMERICAN SPECTATOR POLICY: Note that American University's spectator policy requires proof of vaccination for admission to Bender Arena, as well as masking inside the facility.
LEWISBURG, Pa. -- Bucknell's search for its first Patriot League victory continues Sunday in the nation's capital, as the Bison visit American at 2 p.m. at Bender Arena. The game will air live on ESPN+.
Bucknell simply had a night to forget on Thursday, as Lehigh made 18 3-pointers in a 97-64 win at Sojka Pavilion. Prior to that, the Bison either held a lead or had been within a single possession in the second half of every conference game.
The Bison quickly moved on to preparations for American, which is also seeking its first Patriot League win. The Eagles' January journey has been a bit more disjointed, however. American is 0-2 in PL play and has had three games postponed due to COVID-19 protocols, including Thursday's game at Holy Cross, which was called off just before tip-off with the teams on the floor warming up.
Holy Cross has also postponed its next two games, against Colgate on Sunday and Lafayette on Wednesday. That means each of Bucknell's next three games will come against teams with extra rest. The Bison are scheduled to host Colgate on Wednesday and travel to Holy Cross next Saturday.
Andrew Funk continues to lead Bucknell in scoring at 17.9 points per game. That is also the second-best mark in the Patriot League, trailing only Loyola's Cam Spencer (18.6). Andre Screen is coming off one of his best games of the season, which remarkably came on the same day as he learned of the sudden passing of his mother, Deborah. Screen logged 17 points, six rebounds, four assists, and two blocked shots against Lehigh.
American last played on Monday, falling 79-53 at home to Boston University. The Eagles only had 10 players available in that game, and head coach Mike Brennan was also unavailable. Stacy Beckton Jr., who did not play in that game against the Terriers, is American's top scorer at 13.3 ppg. There should be an interesting battle in the post, where AU's Matt Rogers leads the Patriot League in field-goal percentage (.637), while Screen (.594) ranks second.
• Complete Game Notes
• Digital Game Program
• 2021-22 Media Guide
GAME DIGEST
What: Bucknell (3-14, 0-5 PL) at American (4-10, 0-2 PL)
Where: Bender Arena, Washington, D.C.
When: Sunday, Jan. 16, 2 p.m.
Internet Stream: ESPN+
Local Radio: The Valley WVLY 100.9 FM
Internet Audio: BucknellBison.com
Live Stats: AUEagles.com
Bucknell Tentative Starters
G: Elvin Edmonds IV (5.6 ppg, 2.4 rpg, 2.4 apg)
G: Xander Rice (11.8 ppg, 2.9 rpg, 3.8 apg)
G: Andrew Funk (17.9 ppg, 3.6 rpg, 2.2 apg)
F: Jake van der Heijden (7.6 ppg, 3.6 rpg, 1.4 apg)
C: Andre Screen (11.0 ppg, 6.5 rpg, 1.0 bpg)
With a Win over American, Bucknell Would ...
Bison Club support is the driving force behind Bucknell Athletics. Your donations directly impact the holistic development of more than 750 student-athletes who are building a foundation at Bucknell to become leaders and difference-makers around the globe. Click here to make a gift, or call 570-577-1771 to support your favorite Bison team today. 'ray Bucknell!
LEWISBURG, Pa. -- Bucknell's search for its first Patriot League victory continues Sunday in the nation's capital, as the Bison visit American at 2 p.m. at Bender Arena. The game will air live on ESPN+.
Bucknell simply had a night to forget on Thursday, as Lehigh made 18 3-pointers in a 97-64 win at Sojka Pavilion. Prior to that, the Bison either held a lead or had been within a single possession in the second half of every conference game.
The Bison quickly moved on to preparations for American, which is also seeking its first Patriot League win. The Eagles' January journey has been a bit more disjointed, however. American is 0-2 in PL play and has had three games postponed due to COVID-19 protocols, including Thursday's game at Holy Cross, which was called off just before tip-off with the teams on the floor warming up.
Holy Cross has also postponed its next two games, against Colgate on Sunday and Lafayette on Wednesday. That means each of Bucknell's next three games will come against teams with extra rest. The Bison are scheduled to host Colgate on Wednesday and travel to Holy Cross next Saturday.
Andrew Funk continues to lead Bucknell in scoring at 17.9 points per game. That is also the second-best mark in the Patriot League, trailing only Loyola's Cam Spencer (18.6). Andre Screen is coming off one of his best games of the season, which remarkably came on the same day as he learned of the sudden passing of his mother, Deborah. Screen logged 17 points, six rebounds, four assists, and two blocked shots against Lehigh.
American last played on Monday, falling 79-53 at home to Boston University. The Eagles only had 10 players available in that game, and head coach Mike Brennan was also unavailable. Stacy Beckton Jr., who did not play in that game against the Terriers, is American's top scorer at 13.3 ppg. There should be an interesting battle in the post, where AU's Matt Rogers leads the Patriot League in field-goal percentage (.637), while Screen (.594) ranks second.
• Complete Game Notes
• Digital Game Program
• 2021-22 Media Guide
GAME DIGEST
What: Bucknell (3-14, 0-5 PL) at American (4-10, 0-2 PL)
Where: Bender Arena, Washington, D.C.
When: Sunday, Jan. 16, 2 p.m.
Internet Stream: ESPN+
Local Radio: The Valley WVLY 100.9 FM
Internet Audio: BucknellBison.com
Live Stats: AUEagles.com
Bucknell Tentative Starters
G: Elvin Edmonds IV (5.6 ppg, 2.4 rpg, 2.4 apg)
G: Xander Rice (11.8 ppg, 2.9 rpg, 3.8 apg)
G: Andrew Funk (17.9 ppg, 3.6 rpg, 2.2 apg)
F: Jake van der Heijden (7.6 ppg, 3.6 rpg, 1.4 apg)
C: Andre Screen (11.0 ppg, 6.5 rpg, 1.0 bpg)
With a Win over American, Bucknell Would ...
- ... snap a six-game losing streak and improve to 1-5 in Patriot League play.
- ... shed a 10-game road losing streak dating back to last season.
- ... improve to 45-26 all-time against the Eagles and 19-17 against them in D.C.
- ... improve to 307-143 all-time in Patriot League regular-season play.
- Two teams seeking their first Patriot League victories of the year meet on Sunday at Bender Arena. Bucknell fell to 0-5 in PL play after Thursday's home loss to Lehigh. American is 0-2 with home losses to Lehigh and Boston University, and the Eagles have had three other games postponed due to COVID-19 protocols. American's game at Holy Cross on Thursday was called off during pregame warmups, meaning Sunday's game will be just their second in a 14-day span.
- Three of Bucknell's first four losses in Patriot League play came right down to the wire, but not much went right for the Bison against Lehigh on Thursday. The Mountain Hawks hit 18 3-pointers, the most ever by an opponent in Sojka Pavilion, and outscored Bucknell 53-31 in the second half.
- The Patriot League now features a four-way tie for first place, with Navy, Loyola, Army and Lehigh all sitting at 4-1. Bucknell has played all four of those teams.
- Despite this tough stretch, Andrew Funk continues to score at a high rate for the Bison. He has recorded seven 20-point games this season, three of them coming in Patriot League contests. Funk's 17.9 ppg average ranks second in the Patriot League behind only Loyola's Cam Spencer (18.6). Funk is averaging 19.4 ppg in conference play, which ranks third behind Spencer (20.8) and Holy Cross' Gerrale Gates (19.8).
- Funk is on 1,000-point watch. The senior has 970 career points, leaving him 30 away from becoming Bucknell's 44th 1,000-point scorer. When Funk hits that milestone, he and older brother Tommy Funk would become just the second Patriot League brother combination to both score 1,000 career points. Tommy tallied 1,544 points for Army from 2016-20. The other brother combo to accomplish the feat also involved a Bucknell standout, as Kevin Bettencourt (1,577 from 2002-06) and Holy Cross' Ted Bettencourt (1,035 from 1992-96) also surpassed 1,000 points.
- American has played only three games since its last win over Mount St. Mary's on Dec. 11, and it has been shorthanded in two of those contests. In the Eagles' most recent game, a 79-53 loss to Boston University on Monday, they competed with only 10 available players and without head coach Mike Brennan.
- Stacy Beckton Jr. is American's top scorer at 13.3 ppg. Matt Rogers averages 9.9 ppg and leads the Patriot League in field-goal percentage at 63.7%, just ahead of Bucknell's Andre Screen, who is second at 59.4%.
- The Bucknell-American game can be seen on ESPN+, with Dan Laing and Jimmy Patsos on the call.
- Doug Birdsong, in his 22nd year as "The Voice of the Bison", will handle the local radio broadcast on The Valley, WVLY 100.9 FM.
- The audio feed is also available online free of charge via BucknellBison.com.
- Live in-game statistics can be accessed at AUEagles.com.
- Follow @Bucknell_MBB for in-game updates on Twitter.
- Keith Higgins Jr. and Evan Taylor combined for 11 of Lehigh's 18 3-pointers, and the visiting Mountain Hawks shot their way to a 97-64 win over Bucknell on Thursday night at Sojka Pavilion.
- Andre Screen paced the Bison with 17 points, six rebounds, and four assists. Screen performed well despite playing with a heavy heart, as his mother, Deborah, passed away earlier in the day.
- Andrew Funk added 15 points, Xander Rice had 12 points and five assists, and Jake van der Heijden tallied 10 points, eight rebounds, and three blocked shots.
- Higgins enjoyed a huge night for Lehigh with 26 points, nine assists, five rebounds, two steals, and no turnovers. He was 10-for-17 from the field and 6-for-9 from the arc. Taylor was 5-for-8 from downtown on the way to 21 points, and Nic Lynch (15) and Tyler Whitney-Sidney (11) also scored in double figures.
- Lehigh went 10-for-16 from the arc in the second half, hitting six in a row during one stretch, before finishing 18-for-34 (.529) on the night. The 18 threes set a Sojka Pavilion record for an opponent. Lehigh shot 52.1% overall and had 25 assists on 37 made field goals, with only four turnovers.
- Bucknell shot 36.7% overall and was 5-for-17 from the arc. The Bison did continue their excellent free-throw shooting, hitting on 15 of 17 on the night. Bucknell came into the game ranked 10th nationally in free-throw accuracy and moved up to eighth after hitting 88.2% against Lehigh.
- Bucknell has an overall 44-26 lead in an all-time series with American that includes some historic dates.
- The very first meeting on Jan. 14, 1939 also happened to be the first game ever played in Davis Gym (AU won 38-33). Coincidentally, American was also the opponent for the very last game ever played in Davis Gym on Jan. 11, 2003 (a 63-52 Bison win).
- As Patriot League rivals, Bucknell leads 29-14, including victories in the 2005 and 2006 PL Tournament semifinals.
- Bucknell has won 25 of 33 series meetings in Lewisburg, including 17 out of 20 at Sojka Pavilion, but the Bison are just 11-10 at Bender Arena since American joined the Patriot League in 2001-02.
- Bucknell and American clashed twice last season, coming on back-to-back days to close out the regular season. The Bison had been on a monthlong COVID pause and played those two games without the services of most of their frontcourt players, including leading scorer John Meeks. American won 78-71 at Sojka Pavilion, and then 81-68 the next day at Bender Arena.
- Senior guard Andrew Funk is enjoying his best season to date, with a scoring average (17.9) and FG% (.446) all well above his previous career bests. Funk scored a career-high 38 points at Illinois State on Nov. 20, and his four games this season with 28 or more points are tied for second-most in the nation. Funk is one of only 16 Division I players to hit six or more 3-pointers in a game at least three times this season, and his 38 points are tied for 11th-most in the nation.
- Funk's 38 points against Illinois State tied the Cancun Challenge tournament scoring record. Norris Cole, who later played in the NBA, scored 38 against Florida A&M in 2009.
- Xander Rice's eight assists at Loyola are the most by any active Bison. Rice has 13 assists and only two turnovers in his last two games.
- Bucknell averaged 14.8 turnovers per game in non-conference play, but since the start of the Patriot League schedule the Bison have reduced that figure to 10.8 per game.
- The Bison have 61 assists against 44 turnovers in their last four games, and that has bumped their season assist-turnover ratio back over 1.0 with 246 assists and 232 turnovers.
- Bucknell has struggled to create turnovers, however, as opponents are committing only 8.9 miscues per game on the season. That coupled with some rebounding troubles means that opponents have attempted 147 more field goals this season. The Bison have taken more shots than their opponent only three times this season — against Penn, Illinois State and Loyola — and in all three of those games the margin was just one additional attempt.
- Bucknell has been excellent at the free-throw line thus far, hitting at a 79.6% clip. That is the best mark in the Patriot League and eighth-best in all of Division I basketball.
- Bucknell is back home on Wednesday to face defending Patriot League champion Colgate at 7 p.m. The game will air live on ESPN+.
Bison Club support is the driving force behind Bucknell Athletics. Your donations directly impact the holistic development of more than 750 student-athletes who are building a foundation at Bucknell to become leaders and difference-makers around the globe. Click here to make a gift, or call 570-577-1771 to support your favorite Bison team today. 'ray Bucknell!
Players Mentioned
G
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's Basketball
F
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's Basketball
C
/ Men's Basketball
F
/ Men's BasketballIn The Herd: Holy Cross Game Preview And Darius Day Feature
Thursday, November 13
Post Game Interview: November 12 vs Mount St Mary's
Thursday, November 13
In The Herd: Oklahoma Match Preview And Lucas Lawler Feature
Wednesday, November 12
St. Francis Women's Water Polo Vs. LaSalle (11/16/25)
Tuesday, November 11