26 November, 2006
by Jake Wilson
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1st |
2nd |
Final |
| Bucknell (1-4) |
31 |
41 |
72 |
| Yale (1-3) |
29 |
28 |
57 |
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| Lee Amphitheater – New Haven, CT |
Boxscore |
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| Keys to the Game |
| Key sequence |
It was a close contest, with neither team leading by more than seven, when Eric Flato drilled a three-pointer to cut the Bucknell lead to 37-34 early in the second half. At the other end, Donald Brown found Chris McNaughton inside for a layup, and after a missed three-pointer by Yale, Justin Castleberry hit two free throws. Flato couldn’t connect from deep and Casey Hughes misfired on a jumper, then Darren Mastropaolo hit one of two free throws to give Bucknell its largest lead of the game. The Bison would go on to rip off a 10-0 run, with a Brown three-point play giving them a 47-34 advantage with less than 12 minutes left in the game.
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| Key sign it was over |
Another Flato three-pointer cut Bucknell’s lead to single digits at 62-53 with 2:10 remaining. However, with the shot clock running down, Caleb Holmes fouled John Griffin on a three-pointer and Griffin added the free throw to complete the four-point play. Hughes got to the line, but missed both attempts, then Castleberry showed how it was done with a pair of free throws. When Sam Kaplan missed a three-pointer, Griffin added two free throws to make it a 17-point game with 51 seconds left to make Bucknell’s first victory of 2006-07 a sure thing.
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| Key performance |
Donald Brown had his biggest scoring game since his freshman season with a 16-point afternoon The senior added three rebounds, four assists, and a steal in 34 minutes. 11 of those points came in the second half, when Bucknell reasserted itself in the paint, outscoring Yale 14-12 after the Bulldogs held an 18-8 first-half advantage inside.
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| Key statistic |
The team fouls were relatively even, with Yale whistled for 20 and Bucknell assessed 18, but the Bison were much more aggressive in getting to the free throw line. Consequently, they tripled Yale’s free attempts (24 to 8) and outscored the Bulldogs 21-3. Bucknell was particularly effective after halftime, going hitting 15 of 16 attempts from the stripe in the second half.
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| Notes
– Flato was the top-scoring Bulldog with 15 points, while Hughes had a nice afternoon with 13 points, five rebounds (three offensive), three assists, and three steals in 28 minutes.
– While buoyed by late desperation fouling by Yale, Bucknell’s 41-point second half was its biggest scoring output for a half this season.
– Bucknell lost the turnover battle 17-13, with Yale outscoring the Bison 19-12 in points off turnovers.
– Castleberry nearly doubled his career scoring output (six points) with 11 points in 13 minutes off the bench. The junior was on the court and played a big role in Bucknell’s crucial second-half run. He did most of his damage at the free throw line, going a perfect 8-for-8 from the stripe.
– Despite 11 offensive rebounds, the Bulldogs managed just two second-chance points for the game.
– Matt Kyle started at center for Yale, but played only six minutes and went scoreless.
– The Bison will look to build on the momentum of their first victory of the season when they take on a 2-1 Saint Francis (PA) team on Wednesday, November 29, at 7:00 pm ET in Loretto.
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