Men's Basketball Hosts Colgate Sunday on 20th Annual Dirk Sojka's Slam Dunk with Bison Basketball

LEWISBURG, Pa. -- Looking to bounce back from a tough overtime loss to Lehigh in the Patriot League opener on Thursday night, the Bison men's basketball squad is looking forward to playing at home for the first time in more than a month when Colgate comes to Sojka Pavilion on Sunday afternoon. The day will feature more than just hoops, as it will also be the 20th Annual "Dirk Sojka's Slam Dunk with Bison Basketball". All proceeds from the game, including a raffle drawing and silent auction, will benefit SUNCOM Industries, a local organization that provides a workplace for people with developmental and physical disabilities. The late Dirk Sojka, son of former Bucknell University president Gary Sojka and his wife Sandy, was employed by SUNCOM prior to his passing.

On the court, Bucknell will be looking to snap two nagging losing streaks. The Bison have dropped eight straight games dating back to a Nov. 21 win over NJIT, although the combined record of those eight opponents is 67-43. Bucknell will also be trying to end a nine-game series slide against Colgate, which has captured the last four Patriot League titles.

After playing a very challenging non-league schedule, Bucknell looked terrific for the first 30 minutes at Lehigh on Thursday. The Bison held the league's top-shooting and second-highest-scoring team to just 29 points in that span, but the Mountain Hawks stormed back to win 66-64 in overtime thanks to Nasir Whitlock's go-ahead 3-pointer with 23 seconds left. Noah Williamson recorded his fourth double-double of the season with 17 points and 10 rebounds, and reserve big man Pip Ajayi enjoyed his best game in a Bison uniform with 13 points, five rebounds, and three steals in 18 minutes.

Colgate also played a tough non-league slate and battled some injuries, most notably to big fifth-year center Jeff Woodward, and went 3-10 in November and December. Woodward has returned, however, and he tallied a team-high 17 points in the Raiders' 71-59 home win over Army on Thursday.

Bucknell has not played at home since the Dec. 4 St. Bonaventure game, but Sunday's affair starts a stretch of four out of the next five at Sojka Pavilion. Lafayette visits on Wednesday, and then after a trip to American, the Bison will host Holy Cross and Navy. Of note, Bucknell will hold Alumni Day on Jan. 18 vs. Navy. The program will celebrate the 20th anniversary of the landmark 2005 NCAA Tournament win over Kansas.

GAME DIGEST
What: Colgate (4-10, 1-0 PL) at Bucknell (4-10, 0-1 PL)
Where: Sojka Pavilion, Lewisburg, Pa.
When: Sunday, Jan. 5, 2 p.m.
Watch: ESPN+
Local Radio: Eagle 107
Internet Audio: BucknellBison.com
Live Stats: BucknellBison.com
COMPLETE GAME NOTES | BUY TICKETS

With a Win over Colgate, Bucknell Would ...

... level its Patriot League record at 1-1.
... snap an eight-game losing streak and avoid its first nine-game slide within a season since 1954-55.
... improve to 3-3 at home this season.
... end a nine-game series losing streak to the Raiders and improve to 70-56 all-time against them.

Headlines

After playing six of its last seven games away from home, Bucknell returns to Sojka Pavilion for the first time in more than a month when four-time defending Patriot League champion Colgate visits on Sunday afternoon. The game starts a stretch of four out of five at home
Sunday's game will feature one of the annual highlights of the home schedule, the 20th Annual "Dirk Sojka's Slam Dunk with Bison Basketball". All proceeds from the game, including a raffle drawing and silent auction, will benefit SUNCOM Industries, a local organization that provides a workplace for people with developmental and physical disabilities. The late Dirk Sojka, son of former Bucknell University president Gary Sojka and his wife Sandy, was employed by SUNCOM prior to his passing.
This will be Bucknell's 500th regular-season Patriot League game since the league's inception in 1990-91. The Bison are 326-173 (.653) in the first 499.
The Bison will be looking to bounce back from a disappointing 66-64 overtime loss at Lehigh in the league opener on Thursday. Bucknell played some of its best basketball of the season for the first 30 minutes and had a 49-29 lead with 11 minutes left, but the Mountain Hawks finished regulation on a 28-8 run and won it on a 3-pointer with 24 seconds left in OT.
Bucknell has already played five overtime games this season, which is the most in the nation. Seven other teams have played three OT contests. Including their back-to-back double-overtime games against Mount St. Mary's and Richmond, the Bison have played seven OT periods, which adds up to nearly another full game on the schedule. The seven OT periods are also the most in Division I basketball, two more than Central Arkansas.
Second-half leads have not been safe this season. Three of Bucknell's wins this season have featured dramatic second-half comebacks. The Bison trailed by as many as 12 at Delaware on opening night before ending the game on a 12-0 run to win 85-73. At Southern Indiana, Bucknell held the Screaming Eagles to one point in the last 3:58 of regulation and then led from the first possession on in overtime. At home against Richmond, the Bison trailed by as many as 21 in the first half and by 18 at the break before storming back to win 80-76 in 2OT. On the other hand, the Bison led double-digit leads get away in losses to Mount St. Mary's (14) and Lehigh (20).
Noah Williamson was a preseason All-Patriot League selection and is averaging 13.7 points, 6.6 rebounds, and 1.2 blocks per game. Williamson scored a career-high 32 points in the win over Southern Indiana, and he scored 22 of his 26 after halftime to lead the comeback charge against Richmond.
Josh Bascoe recently surpassed Williamson as the team's leading scorer. Bascoe is now averaging a career-high 14.7 ppg, including 17.5 ppg in his last four games. Bascoe ranks sixth in the Patriot League in scoring and ranks in the top 15 in the PL in eight different categories.
Pip Ajayi is coming off his best game in his two years as a Bison. The reserve frontcourt player tallied 13 points, five rebounds, and three steals in 18 minutes off the bench at Lehigh. After starting the season 3-for-8 from the field, Ajayi is 19-for-26 (.731) since then, including 17-for-22 (.773) over his last seven games.
This is year No. 2 under head coach John Griffin III, a 2008 Bucknell graduate who was a standout guard for the Bison. Bucknell went 14-19 overall and 10-8 in the Patriot League last season. The Bison were playing their best basketball at the end of the year and finished in a four-way tie for second place, although tiebreakers relegated them to the No. 5 seed in the Patriot League Tournament. An 80-57 rout of American in the PL quarterfinals was the team's fourth straight victory, and then the Bison took top-seeded Colgate to the final seconds in a 68-65 loss in the semifinals.
Colgate has been the Patriot League's premier team in recent seasons, as the Raiders have captured each of the last four league titles and have played in seven straight PL Tournament finals.
Colgate struggled a bit in non-league play, however, going 3-10 with wins over SUNY Canton, UNC Wilmington, and Vermont. The Raiders started the Patriot League campaign on the right foot, beating Army 71-59 at home on Thursday behind 17 points from Jeff Woodward and 15 from Jalen Cox. Colgate limited Patriot League scoring leader Jalen Rucker to eight points, more than 10 under his season average.
Woodward, Colgate's 6'11", 270-pound fifth-year center, missed eight games due to injury earlier in the season, and he now averages 10.0 points and 6.5 rebounds while shooting 64.3% from the field. Nicolas Louis-Jacques is the team's top scorer at 12.1 ppg, and Brady Cummins (10.6) and Cox (10.2) also score in double figures. The Raiders shoot 33.2% from the arc as a team, but they have four regulars at 36% or better.

How to Get the Game

The Bucknell-Colgate game will be streamed on ESPN+, with "Voice of the Bison" Doug Birdsong and former Bison assistant coach Terry Conrad on the call from Sojka Pavilion.
Joe Vasile will have the local radio call on Eagle 107.
The audio feed is also available online free of charge via BucknellBison.com.
Live statistics can be accessed via BucknellBison.com.
Follow @Bucknell_MBB for in-game updates on Twitter.

Last Time Out

Noah Williamson tallied 17 points and 10 rebounds and frontcourt mate Pip Ajayi scored a Bucknell-career-high 13 points off the bench, but the Bison dropped a 66-64 overtime verdict to Lehigh in the Patriot League opener on Thursday night at Stabler Arena.
Nasir Whitlock scored 20 points for the Mountain Hawks, including the game-winning 3-pointer with 24 seconds remaining in OT, as the hosts completed a big comeback from 20 points down in the second half.
The Bison played some of their best basketball of the season in building a 49-29 lead with 11 minutes remaining, but they struggled offensively the rest of the way as foul trouble built up. Bucknell still led 57-53 after a Brandon McCreesh put-back with 1:15 to go. Lehigh tied it on a Whitlock baseline jumper with 25 seconds left, and Williamson couldn't convert two potential go-ahead free throws with four seconds remaining.
Playing overtime for a national-leading fifth time this season, Bucknell took a 64-62 lead on a 3-point play from Elvin Edmonds IV with 54 seconds to go. After a timeout, Keith Higgins Jr. missed a 3-pointer from the left corner, but Joshua Ingram grabbed the offensive rebound and kicked it over to Whitlock for the go-ahead trey. Bascoe had his shot blocked on a drive and the ball was tied up on the rebound. Higgins made 1 of 2 at the foul line to make it 66-64 with 10.9 seconds left, and then Bascoe's contested 3-pointer at the buzzer rimmed out.
Williamson recorded his fourth double-double of the season, and Bascoe also reached double figures with 15 points to go with five rebounds, five assists, and three steals. Ajayi 13 points were his most as a Bison after transferring from Mercyhurst, and he added five rebounds, three steals, and a blocked shot in 18 minutes.
Bucknell shot 40.0% from the field on the night but hit just 5 of 18 from the arc and 11 of 20 at the foul line. Lehigh shot 33.8% overall and went 9-for-27 from the arc and 13-for-21 from the line.

Bucknell vs. Colgate Series Notes

This will be the 126th all-time meeting between Bucknell and Colgate in a series that dates back 105 years to 1920. The Bison have a 69-56 series lead. The only other opponents that Bucknell has played at least 100 times are Lehigh (187), Lafayette (179), Gettysburg (126) and Penn State (105).
As Patriot League rivals, Bucknell is 48-30, including 28-8 in Lewisburg.
Colgate has won nine straight and 12 of the last 13 in the series. Bucknell's last win was a 71-70 verdict at Sojka Pavilion late in the 2019-20 regular season. Its last win in Hamilton was a 63-51 verdict on Jan. 15, 2018.
The Raiders won all three meetings last season, including a 84-73 vedict at Sojka Pavilion. The game was tied in the late stages of the first half, but Brady Cummins beat the buzzer with a 3-pointer, and then Colgate scored the first eight points of the second half for an 11-0 run. Jack Forrest and Elvin Edmonds IV scored 17 points for Bucknell, while Braeden Smith led six Raiders in double figures with 14 to go with nine rebounds and six assists.
In the rematch in Hamilton on Feb. 17, the Bison could not sustain a hot start and fell 62-50. Bucknell finished with a 36-35 rebounding edge, held the Patriot League's leading 3-point shooting team to 3-for-18, and allowed only four second-chance points. But the Bison struggled offensively after jumping out to an 8-0 lead, finishing at 31.0% from the field and 5-for-24 from the arc. Forrest led the Bison with 14 points, while Keegan Records had 13 to lead the Raiders.
Bucknell and Colgate played a barnburner in the Patriot League Tournament semifinals at Cotterell Court, and the Raiders prevailed 68-65 in a game that came right down to the final shot. The Bison built a 15-point lead in the first half before the Raiders rallied. Colgate started 0-for-16 from 3-point range but then hit 5 of 6 in one stretch to spark the comeback. Noah Williamson scored the game's first eight points and finished with 19 and eight rebounds. Smith scored 17 of his 21 in the second half to lead Colgate.
These two teams recently met in back-to-back Patriot League championship games. Bucknell won 83-54 in the 2018 title tilt at Sojka Pavilion, and Colgate returned the favor with a 94-80 win at Cotterell Court in 2019. The Raiders have won six of the 10 all-time postseason meetings. The final game of John Griffin's collegiate career came in Bucknell's loss in Hamilton in the 2008 semifinals.

Bucknell vs. Colgate in Postseason Play
1993 PL Semifinals: Bucknell 75, Colgate 73 (at Bucknell)
1996 PL Semifinals: Colgate 67, Bucknell 61 (at Holy Cross)
1997 PL Semifinals: Bucknell 71, Colgate 58 (at Lehigh)
2001 PL Quarterfinals: Bucknell 75, Colgate 68 (at Navy)
2008 PL Semifinals: Colgate 54, Bucknell 40 (at Colgate)
2018 PL Final: Bucknell 83, Colgate 54 (at Bucknell)
2019 PL Final: Colgate 94, Bucknell 80 (at Colgate)
2021 PL Semifinals: Colgate 105, Bucknell 75 (at Colgate)
2022 PL Semifinals: Colgate 96, Bucknell 68 (at Colgate)
2024 PL Semifinals: Colgate 68, Bucknell 65 (at Colgate)

Facts & Figures

Bucknell shot the three better against its "high major" opponents this season. The Bison shot 35.0% (41-117) from the arc against Kentucky, Maryland, Gonzaga, and Syracuse, compared with 28.1% (66-235) in all other games.
The Lehigh game notwithstanding, Bucknell has been a much better second-half team this season. The Bison have scored 92 more points in the second halves of games (497) than in the first halves (405).
The Bison lead the Patriot League in field-goal percentage defense, allowing opponents to shoot just 42.6% on the season.
Noah Williamson against Richmond became the first Bison to block five shots in a game since Nana Foulland against Loyola in 2018.
Williamson's 90 free-throw attempts are 29th-most in the nation.
Free-throw shooting has been a good news/bad news situation for Bucknell this season. The positive is that the team is getting to the line frequently. The Bison rank 91st out of 355 Division I teams in free-throw attempts per game with 21.5, and they rank 78th in FT attempts per FG attempt (.378). The latter figure is up from .290 last season. The negative is that Bucknell has really struggled at the charity stripe, with a team FT% of .631 that ranks 345th nationally.
Williamson has certainly been a catalyst for the Bison thus far. In the team's four wins, he is averaging 22.8 points and 8.5 rebounds while shooting 63.6% from the field. In the eight losses, he is averaging 10.1 points, 5.8 rebounds, and shooting 39.6%.
Bucknell is shooting 33.3% from 3-point range on the road but just 28.7% at home this season.

Who's Got Next?

Bucknell returns home on Wednesday to face Lafayette at 7 p.m. The Leopards opened Patriot League play with a 60-46 home win over Boston University, and they will visit Navy on Sunday in a battle of 1-0 teams.
Bucknell will hold Alumni Day on Jan. 18 when Navy visits Sojka Pavilion. The program will celebrate the 20th anniversary of the landmark 2005 NCAA Tournament win over Kansas.

Men's Basketball Hosts Colgate Sunday on 20th Annual Dirk Sojka's Slam Dunk with Bison Basketball

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Pip Ajayi

Josh Bascoe

Elvin Edmonds IV

Jack Forrest

Brandon McCreesh

Noah Williamson

Men's Basketball Hosts Colgate Sunday on 20th Annual Dirk Sojka's Slam Dunk with Bison Basketball

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Pip Ajayi

Josh Bascoe

Elvin Edmonds IV

Jack Forrest

Brandon McCreesh

Noah Williamson

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