21 November, 2006
by Elliot Smilowitz
| |
1st |
2nd |
OT |
Final |
| Bucknell (0-4) |
19 |
37 |
4 |
60 |
| Penn State (3-1) |
26 |
30 |
7 |
63 |
| Bryce Jordan Center – State College, PA |
Boxscore |
| Â |
|
For the fourth time this year, the Bucknell Bison played a nationally-known team close but lost in a heart-breaking finish. This time, the beneficiaries were the Penn State Nittany Lions, who beat Bucknell 63-60 on a last-second three-pointer in overtime.
The two teams played even for most of the first half, with the Lions running off 6 unanswered points late in the half to take control. Penn State led by a 50-38 margin with 8:35 left in the game, but an 18-4 run by the Bison gave them the lead late in regulation. With 8 seconds left, John Griffin fouled Ben Luber, who hit a pair of free throws to tie the game. Andrew Morrison missed a last-second shot that would have won the game for the Bison.
The overtime period was slow, with the teams combining to shoot 2-of-7 from the field. The teams traded the lead repeatedly, until a missed Abe Badmus free throw paved the way for Mike Walker to hit a game-winning trey.
Darren Mastropaolo scored 12 points and grabbed 9 boards, and three other Bison hit double-figures scoring. Chris McNaughton and Donald Brown both fouled out late in regulation for Bucknell, after scoring 11 and 8 respectively. Penn State was led by Danny Morrissey’s 21 points.
|
| Â |
| Keys to the Game |
| Key sequence |
With 2:14 left in the game, Mastropaolo hit a lay-up to reclaim a 1-point lead for the Bison. David Jackson hit two free throws for the Lions, but Griffin hit a three (his first points of the game) to cap an 18-4 Bison run to climb back into the game.
|
| Key sign it was over |
With 59 seconds left in OT, Jamelle Cornley missed a lay-up that would have put Penn State up by 3. The Bison ran down the clock, and after Morrison missed a shot, Badmus grabbed the rebound and was fouled. He hit the first free throw but missed the second, leaving the game tied for Walker to hit a three-pointer as the game ended.
|
| Key performance |
Morrissey had a game-high 21 points, including 5 three-pointers and perfect 6-for-6 shooting from the line. Morrissey played 42 minutes for Penn State.
|
| Key statistic |
The Lions converted on 24 of 28 of free throw attempts.
|
| |
| Â |
| Notes |
| – |
Bucknell won the battle of the boards 33-26 over the Lions.
|
| |
| – |
Griffin shot 1-for-8 on the night, all from beyond the arc. As a team, the Bison were 5-for-21 for three.
|
| |
| – |
McNaughton attempted just 3 shots for Bucknell, but converted 7-of-7 free throws to total 11 points.
|
| |
| – |
The Bison had 18 turnovers, “led†by Badmus’s 6.
|
| |
| – |
The Bucknell schedule provides a respite in the next two weeks, with a pair of games at Yale and St. Francis, before facing Northern Iowa and George Mason in back-to-back days.
|
| |
You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.
You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
