Saturday, February 1
Annapolis, Md.
2 p.m.
Bucknell University
10-13,6-4Patriot
85
at
75
Navy
8-15,5-5Patriot
1
2
F
Bucknell
51
34
85
Navy
26
49
75
Photo by: Keith Lucas
Bison Men Ride Huge First Half to 85-75 Win at Navy
2/1/2025 4:47:00 PM | Men's Basketball
ANNAPOLIS, Md. – Noah Williamson piled up 29 points and 12 rebounds, and the Bucknell men's basketball team parlayed a monster first half into an 85-75 win over Navy on Saturday afternoon at Alumni Hall. Bucknell won its second straight game and moved into a tie for second place in the Patriot League standings at 6-4, while Navy slipped to 5-5 after seeing its three-game winning streak come to an end.
Williamson notched his eighth double-double by halftime, and Elvin Edmonds IV scored all 14 of his points in a sensational first half. Edmonds splashed a 3-pointer on the game's first possession, setting the tone for Bucknell's best 20 minutes of the season. The Bison shot a whopping 75 percent (21-28) from the field and went 5-for-7 from the 3-point arc on the way to a 51-26 halftime lead.
Edmonds' second of four first-half treys made it a 12-2 start, and nine minutes into the game the Bison were 11-for-13 from the field with tip-ins from Williamson and Pip Ajayi on the two that were missed.
Bucknell led 26-19 at the midpoint of the first half, then outscored Navy 25-7 over the remainder of the period. Josh Bascoe fired a sweet alley-oop to Pip Ajayi, Edmonds hit his fourth 3-pointer of the half, and Josh Fulton scored four straight points on a dunk and a layup to give the Bison a big lift off the bench. Williamson's 3-point play with 5.8 seconds left gave Bucknell a stunning 25-point lead, matching it's largest of the entire season.
Things got a bit nervy in a disjointed second half that was littered with fouls at both ends. The Bison couldn't keep the hot shooting going, starting the second half 4-for-17 as Navy crept closer. Navy's top scorer Austin Benigni was held to one point in the first half before scoring 20 in the second. He tallied 13 of his team's 16 points in one stretch, and his layup at the 2:03 mark made it a seven-point game at 72-65.
The Bison have had trouble holding on to second-half leads on the road this season, but this time they were able to close it out. In the final two minutes, Williamson scored twice on breakaways to beat the press, and Bucknell went 9-for-12 at the foul line to complete the season sweep of the Midshipmen.
Bucknell shot 56.9 percent from the field, its third time in the last four better than 50 percent, and 7-for-16 from the 3-point arc. Navy came in riding a three-game winning streak with an average margin of 17.7 points, but the Bison held the Mids to 40.6 percent shooting (9-25 3FG).
Reserve guard Carnegie Johnson also scored 21 points for Navy. The Bison did well on big center Aidan Kehoe, who recently had a 20-rebound game against Army. Kehoe finished with six points and five rebounds.
Williamson now has eight 20-point games to go with his league-leading eight double-doubles. Bascoe also scored in double figures with 11 points to go with his second straight seven-assist game. Bucknell finished with a 37-30 rebounding edge while snapping a nine-game road losing streak.
American defeated Army on Saturday to move to 8-2 in the Patriot League, and the Eagles will be at Sojka Pavilion on Wednesday. Bucknell, Army, and Colgate are tied for second place at 6-4.
Williamson notched his eighth double-double by halftime, and Elvin Edmonds IV scored all 14 of his points in a sensational first half. Edmonds splashed a 3-pointer on the game's first possession, setting the tone for Bucknell's best 20 minutes of the season. The Bison shot a whopping 75 percent (21-28) from the field and went 5-for-7 from the 3-point arc on the way to a 51-26 halftime lead.
Edmonds' second of four first-half treys made it a 12-2 start, and nine minutes into the game the Bison were 11-for-13 from the field with tip-ins from Williamson and Pip Ajayi on the two that were missed.
Bucknell led 26-19 at the midpoint of the first half, then outscored Navy 25-7 over the remainder of the period. Josh Bascoe fired a sweet alley-oop to Pip Ajayi, Edmonds hit his fourth 3-pointer of the half, and Josh Fulton scored four straight points on a dunk and a layup to give the Bison a big lift off the bench. Williamson's 3-point play with 5.8 seconds left gave Bucknell a stunning 25-point lead, matching it's largest of the entire season.
Things got a bit nervy in a disjointed second half that was littered with fouls at both ends. The Bison couldn't keep the hot shooting going, starting the second half 4-for-17 as Navy crept closer. Navy's top scorer Austin Benigni was held to one point in the first half before scoring 20 in the second. He tallied 13 of his team's 16 points in one stretch, and his layup at the 2:03 mark made it a seven-point game at 72-65.
The Bison have had trouble holding on to second-half leads on the road this season, but this time they were able to close it out. In the final two minutes, Williamson scored twice on breakaways to beat the press, and Bucknell went 9-for-12 at the foul line to complete the season sweep of the Midshipmen.
Bucknell shot 56.9 percent from the field, its third time in the last four better than 50 percent, and 7-for-16 from the 3-point arc. Navy came in riding a three-game winning streak with an average margin of 17.7 points, but the Bison held the Mids to 40.6 percent shooting (9-25 3FG).
Reserve guard Carnegie Johnson also scored 21 points for Navy. The Bison did well on big center Aidan Kehoe, who recently had a 20-rebound game against Army. Kehoe finished with six points and five rebounds.
Williamson now has eight 20-point games to go with his league-leading eight double-doubles. Bascoe also scored in double figures with 11 points to go with his second straight seven-assist game. Bucknell finished with a 37-30 rebounding edge while snapping a nine-game road losing streak.
American defeated Army on Saturday to move to 8-2 in the Patriot League, and the Eagles will be at Sojka Pavilion on Wednesday. Bucknell, Army, and Colgate are tied for second place at 6-4.
Team Stats
Buck
Navy
FG%
.569
.406
3FG%
.438
.360
FT%
.741
.700
RB
37
30
TO
15
7
STL
5
8
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
29
FGM
11
3FGM
0
FTM
7
Pts
14
FGM
5
3FGM
4
FTM
0
Pts
11
FGM
2
3FGM
0
FTM
7
Pts
8
FGM
2
3FGM
0
FTM
4
Players Mentioned
G
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's BasketballC
/ Men's BasketballIn The Herd: Georgetown Game Preview And Katie Connell Feature
Thursday, September 11
Bucknell at Marist Football Game Highlights 9-6-2025
Tuesday, September 09
Old Dominion at Bucknell Men's Soccer Highlights 9-7-2025
Monday, September 08
Temple at Bucknell Field Hockey Highlights 9-7-2025
Sunday, September 07