3 February, 2007
by Elliot Smilowitz
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1st |
2nd |
Final |
| Bucknell (14-8, 8-1 Patriot) |
39 |
39 |
78 |
| Navy (11-12, 1-7 Patriot) |
37 |
26 |
63 |
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In their first game without leading scorer Donald Brown, Bucknell shifted their offensive focus from the inside to outside, beating Navy 78-63. The Bison shot 11-of-22 from beyond the arc, taking down Navy at its own game.
It was Navy that came out shooting, grabbing an 8-point lead midway through the first half Bucknell quickly closed their deficit, forcing several ties. In the final seconds of the half, Bucknell freshman Pat Behan (receiving additional minutes due to Brown’s injury) hit a three-pointer to give the Bison a 2-point lead that they took into the half.
The second half was another story, though, as Bucknell shot their way to a 50-40 lead with 16:10 to go. Navy kept it close for a while, before the Bison used another 9-0 run to run away late in the game. Bucknell used an even offensive effort, with Chris McNaughton and Darren Mastropaolo scoring 13 and 12 points respectively on the inside, while John Griffin and Jason Vegotsky scoring 15 and 9 points apiece on the perimeter. The Bison shot 50 percent on threes (11-for-22) and on two-pointers (14-for-28). Meanwhile, the Midshipmen struggled to 39.6 percent shooting from the floor. Greg Sprink scored 18 points for Navy, and Chris Harris added 12 off the bench on 4 three-pointers.
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| Keys to the Game |
| Key sequence |
Bucknell came shooting out of halftime with an 11-3 run to take command of the game. A 4-point play by John Griffin and a three by Jason Vegotsky highlighted the run, as the Bison used not their interior size but shooting prowess to pull away.
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| Key sign it was over |
With 5 minutes to go, Navy was down 11 with the ball, but freshman Scott Brooks turned the ball over, leading to a Mastropaolo jumper. After Navy missed a pair of long-range attempts, Vegotsky hit another trey. Before the Mids knew what hit them, they were down by 20 with under 2 minutes remaining.
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| Key performance |
McNaughton used his size to dominate the interior, with 13 points and 12 rebounds.
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| Key statistic |
Bucknell shot 52.4 percent from the floor in the second half, including 6-of-10 from three.
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| Notes |
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Bucknell had 14 turnovers, with Navy being credited for 8 steals. Midshipman reserve Clif Colbert grabbed 5 of those steals. Despite this, Navy only scored 12 point off turnovers.
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| – |
Both teams emptied their benches late in the game: Bucknell reserves George Medrano and Zach Evans saw rare playing time, while Navy used Ben Biles and Brian Richards.
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| – |
Bucknell outrebounded Navy 40-22. Five Bison players had more rebounds than Trey Stanton, Navy’s leading rebounder.
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Both teams hit the road this week. Bucknell travels to American Tuesday night, and Navy heads to Lehigh Wednesday.
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