Women's Basketball Set for Big Patriot League Matchup at Boston U. Saturday

BOSTON, Mass. – Bucknell visits Boston U. for its final regular season road game on Saturday. It's a huge matchup as the Bison and the Terriers are two of the three teams tied for second place in the Patriot League, and both are just a game out of the top spot.

The Terriers have struggled with two losses over the last week, while Bucknell has been on a role to the tune of four straight victories. While Bucknell leads 11-4 in the all-time series with the Terriers, it's gone back and forth in recent years with Boston winning the first game of the season and the Bison claiming the second since the start of 2018-19.

Guiding Bucknell to its last four wins has been Taylor O'Brien, who has scored 20 or more points in three straight games and eclipsed the 1,000 career points mark on Wednesday. The Bison will have to slow down Boston junior Sydney Johnson, who hung 23 on the board in the Terriers' 67-58 win in Sojka Pavilion back on Feb. 2. The Terriers are the last team to have scored more than 60 points against Bucknell, which ranks 11^th in the country in scoring defense.

• Game Notes
• Digital Program
• 2021-22 Media Guide

What: Bucknell (20-7, 11-5 PL) at Boston U. (15-12, 11-5 PL)
When: Saturday, Feb. 26 at 2 p.m.
Where: Case Gym - Boston, Mass.
Streaming: ESPN+
Radio: 90.5 WVBU
Live Statistics: GoTerriers.com

Last Game's Starters
Sr./G: Marly Walls (7.7 ppg, 4.2 rpg, 3.5 apg)
Sr./G: Taylor O'Brien (16.4 ppg, 6.7 rpg, 2.0 spg)
Fr./G: Cecelia Collins (11.3 ppg, 4.8 rpg, 2.8 apg)
Fr./F: Isabella King (3.1 ppg, 1.8 rpg, 0.4 spg)
Jr./F: Emma Shaffer (4.5 ppg, 4.3 rpg, 1.3 apg)

With a win over Boston U., Bucknell would...
• ... improve to 21-7 overall this season and 12-5 in Patriot League play.
• ... collect a fifth straight victory.
• ... have an all-time winning record for the first time since 1980 (630-629).
• ... move to 54-14 overall under Woodruff.
• ... improve to 12-4 all-time against the Terriers.
• ... improve to 12-4 away from Sojka Pavilion this season.
• ... improve to 36-7 in Patriot League play under Woodruff.
• ... move to 277-183 all-time in Patriot League play.

Headlines
• Bucknell visits Boston U. for a massive game between two of the three teams tied for second place in the Patriot League standings. Bucknell is red hot and seeking a fifth straight win, while the Terriers are looking to put an end to a two-game losing skid. The Bison are also looking to avoid being swept by a league opponent for the first time since 2014-15. Holy Cross currently sits in first place and is just one game up at 12-4.
• With a win over Army on Wednesday, Bucknell secured its sixth straight 20-win season in a row (excluding the 2020-21 10-game season). The Bison have the best overall record in the Patriot League at 20-7.
• Bucknell's offense had one of its best outings of the season on Wednesday, posting its second-highest scoring total (79 points) while shooting 50 percent from the field and 60 percent from beyond the arc. Four Bisons scored in double figures.
• Bucknell also continued to impress defensively, holding the Black Knights to 51 points on 33.3 percent shooting. The Bison have held opponents to 60 or fewer points in six straight games and 21 times all season. Bucknell ranks 11th in the nation in scoring defense (53.8 ppg). The Bison are also 12th in turnovers per game (12.3).
• Bucknell senior Taylor O'Brien became the 27th player in program history to eclipse 1,000 points in her career on Wednesday. She reached the mark with 2:04 left in the fourth quarter and scored 20 points in the game, including 10 in the final 10 minutes. O'Brien ranks second in the league in points per game this season (16.4).
• The Bison also saw two others post career marks on Wednesday. Senior Marly Walls scored a career-high 19 points with three makes from beyond the arc, and she tied her career best with eight assists, all of which came in the first half. Rookie Isabella King set a new scoring high with 15 points on 5-of-6 makes from 3-point range. King has started the last two games.
• Cecelia Collins scored in double figures for a 17th time this season on Wednesday, posting 10 points against the Leopards. She's started all 27 games during her rookie campaign.
• Bucknell has been dominant against league opponents for some time and has gone 99-15 in PL play since the start of the 2015-16 season. Under head coach Trevor Woodruff, Bucknell is 35-7 against league opponents during the regular season. 29 of those 34 wins have been by double digits.
• Bucknell went 9-2 in non-conference play, ending that portion of the schedule on an eight-game winning streak. The Bison defeated their last six non-conference opponents by double digits.
• 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 66-14 overall during that stretch.
• 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 53-14 overall under his direction.

Scouting Boston U./Series History
• Boston is one of three teams tied for third place in the standings with an 11-5 league record. The Terriers 15-12 overall and 9-4 when playing at home.
• Boston, once sitting atop the league standings, has dropped its last two contests to Colgate and Lafayette. Boston also has not won back-to-back games since Feb. 2. The Terriers were the Patriot League Tournament runners-up last season.
• The Terriers rank third in the Patriot League in scoring offense (62.7 ppg) and fifth in scoring defense (59.1 ppg). They own the league's best field goal percentage (42.2%) and post the most blocks per game (4.37). Boston is also second in rebounding margin (+5.0).
• Boston shot just 35.9 percent in its most recent loss against the Leopards, which was its lowest percentage since Jan. 5. The Terriers also trailed 43-32 in rebounds.
• Boston junior Sydney Johnson leads the team in scoring, assists and steals, and her 16 points per game are fourth-best in the Patriot League. She's also third in the league in field goal percentage (42.8%).
• Fellow junior Maren Durant is fifth in the league in rebounding (9.2 rpg) and tied for third in blocks (1.7 bpg).
• Bucknell holds an 11-4 lead over Boston in the all-time series, but the two teams have split the last five games. The Bison are also 5-2 when playing at Case Gym.
• Boston is the only Patriot League team that Coach Woodruff does not have a winning record over (1-2), and Case Gym is the one venue in the league where he's still seeking a win (0-1).
• Boston won 67-59 in the last meeting in Lewisburg on Feb. 2. Bucknell forced nine turnovers in the first quarter to open a 15-7 lead after 10 minutes of play. Boston U. responded by outscoring Bucknell 20-4 in the second quarter to lead 27-19 at halftime. The game was close throughout the second half, although Bucknell was never able to draw even. The Bison got as close as 41-39 late in the third quarter. Boston outrebounded Bucknell 42-27 in the contest.
• Carly Krsul led the Bison with 18 points and eight rebounds, and Taylor O'Brien scored 14 points with nine rebounds. Three Terriers scored in double figures, including a game-high 23 from Johnson.

Series Record: 11-4
Record at Home: 6-2
Record at Boston University: 5-2
Neutral Site Record: 0-0
Trevor Woodruff Record: 1-2
Current Streak: 1 loss
Longest Winning Streak: 9
Longest Losing Streak: 1

Last Time Out
• Taylor O'Brien scored 20 points, including her 1,000th career point late in the contest, and the Bucknell led nearly wire-to-wire in a 79-51 victory over Army West Point Wednesday evening at Sojka Pavilion.
• Bucknell, which lost to Army earlier in the season, led 25-8 after the first quarter and held a 20-point (42-22) advantage at the half. The Bison kept their lead at least 13 points the entire second half as they notched their second-highest point total of the season. Their largest lead was 34 points in the final minutes of the fourth quarter.
• Marly Walls registered a career-high 19 points and tied her career high with eight assists, all of which came in the first half.
• Isabella King connected on 5-of-6 3-pointers in the game to post a career-high 15 points. Bucknell was 9-for-15 overall from behind the arc.

New Notable Career Highs
• Marly Walls - 19 points and three made 3-pointers vs. Army
• Isabella King - 15 points and five made 3-pointers vs. Army

Dominant Defense
• Since head coach Trevor Woodruff's arrival in 2019-20, the Bison have had one of the best scoring defenses in the country. Bucknell allowed just 53.6 points per game during Woodruff's first season, which ranked eighth in NCAA Division I. Last season the Bison allowed 55.5 per game and finished 17th in the country.
• Bucknell currently ranks 11th in the country and first in the Patriot League with 53.8 points allowed per game. The Bison have held opponents to under 60 points in 19 of their 27 games, and 10 have been held to under 50.
• Bucknell has held teams to 20 or fewer first-half points nine times this season and 12 or fewer first-half points three times since the start of the 2019-20 season. Additionally, the Bison have held teams to single digits in 63 quarters during that stretch (excludes overtime periods).

Consistent Patriot League Success
• Bucknell is 99-15 in Patriot League play since the start of the 2015-16 season. The run includes two Patriot League Tournament titles and five first-place finishes in the regular season. Bucknell also has the best overall record in the league during that span at 154-44.

Up Next
• Bucknell hosts Colgate at Sojka Pavilion for its final regular season game on Wednesday, March 2. Tip-off is scheduled for 6 p.m., and the game will be broadcast on ESPN+.

Women's Basketball Set for Big Patriot League Matchup at Boston U. Saturday

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Cecelia Collins

Isabella King

Carly Krsul

Taylor O'Brien

Emma Shaffer

Marly Walls

Women's Basketball Set for Big Patriot League Matchup at Boston U. Saturday

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Cecelia Collins

Isabella King

Carly Krsul

Taylor O'Brien

Emma Shaffer

Marly Walls

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