Category: Men

Eric Brod

Senior Writer

A magical season for the 2013 Bison men’s basketball team came to an end on March 21 when the Bison, seeded 11th in the East region of the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament, fell to sixth-seeded Butler 68-56 at Rupp Arena in Lexington, Ky. The Orange and Blue finished the season with an outstanding 28-6 record, the most wins by a team in Patriot League history.

Making the sixth tournament appearance in program history, the Orange and Blue got off to a sluggish start offensively, scoring just 14 points in the opening frame. The hero for the Bison in the first half was Joe Willman ’13, who scored eight of the 14 points en route to a career-high 20 points on 10-16 shooting. Willman explains how he was able to get open looks throughout the game.

“Butler hedges ball screens really aggressively and keeps two guys on the ball so I was able to get to open space for open shots,” Willman said. “The guards did a really good job at making passes out of the ball screens. Also, Mike generates a lot of attention so his man was reluctant to leave him, leaving me open.”

Mike Muscala ’13 was stifled throughout the half by Andrew Smith and the Butler defense, limited to nine points for the game on 4-17 shooting. Muscala was still able to grab 10 rebounds. Despite struggling shooting-wise in the first half, the defense, which has been stout all season, held Butler to just 21 points, keeping the deficit at seven heading into the half. Cameron Ayers ’14 discusses what head coach Dave Paulsen’s message was to the team at the half.

“He told us that shots would fall in the second half and that we just need to step up and hit shots,” Ayers said. “We were playing well defensively and only held them to 21 points, so just to keep the defensive intensity up as well.”

Butler extended its lead to 29-18 with 16:35 left in the second half, but the resilient Bison would not go away and staged a comeback. Ignited by a three-point play by Muscala, the Orange and Blue went on a 19-2 run to take a 37-31 lead. The run featured a key jumper by Willman and a transition three by Ayers, who finished with nine points on 3-10 shooting for the game. Butler responded with a run of their own, but Ryan Frazier ’16 came back with a huge three-point play to take back the lead at 40-39.

Butler would take control for the rest of the game as they outscored the Orange and Blue by 12 en route to the third round of the tournament, where they would lose 64-62 to three-seeded Marquette. Ayers discusses what made Butler such a tough matchup for the team.

“They are a very physical team and they don’t make too many mistakes and won’t beat themselves,” Ayers said. “They are very disciplined on defense and make you run your offense to perfection.”

After being inserted into the starting lineup just last month, point guard Steven Kaspar ’15 continued his strong play with six points, six assists and six rebounds in a career-high 32 minutes of action. He also helped lead the defense in holding Butler to just 36 percent shooting, which came into the game shooting 45 percent for the season. The Bulldogs’ defense was also strong, limiting the Bison to just 37 percent from the field.

Despite the loss, the Orange and Blue completed arguably the most successful season in program history. The senior class of Bryson Johnson, Muscala, Willman and Colin Klebon won 92 games in their career, the most in the history of the program. Muscala finished his career as the Bison’s all-time leading scorer (2,036) and second in rebounds (1,093). Johnson, who finished with nine points in the Butler game, leaves as the Patriot League’s record holder for three point baskets in a career (323).

“We are proud of a lot of things over the past four years. We are proud to have won as many games as we did along with setting the records we did with a great group of guys, playing for unbelievable coaches,” Willman said. 

While the Bison are losing much of their veteran core from this year, the future looks bright for the program in the years moving forward. Players such as Ayers, Kaspar, Frazier, Dom Hoffman ’16, Ryan Hill ’14 and Chris Hass ’16 will have the Orange and Blue competitive for next year.

“I’m looking forward to another good season next year with a great group of guys. It is going to be extremely difficult to replace the seniors, obviously because they were a huge part of our success on and off the court, but we are going to have to do it collectively,” Ayers said. “This summer and next fall we all are going to have to improve individually but once we all get back together I think we will surprise a lot of people and have a successful year.”

Andrew Arnao

Sports Editor

University receiving large amount of media attention thanks to NCAA berth

The men’s basketball’s fantastic season has garnered much attention for the University, and many pundits are quick to take notice. While some experts are already labeling the Bison as a possible Cinderella story and a trendy upset pick in the NCAA brackets, others are expressing confusion over how a small, little heard of mid-Pennsylvanian school even managed to make its way into the Big Dance. Here are just a couple of stories about the Bison in the national media.

In the annual March Tuition Madness bracket, created by The Awl, the 64 schools are pitted against each other to see who has the highest tuition. After Georgetown won in 2012 with an average tuition of $40,920, Bucknell claimed the crown this year with a whopping average tuition of $45,132. The Bison claimed this “victory” over second place Notre Dame, who averaged $42,464 in tuition this year.

In perhaps more welcome news, the Bison also placed high in graduation rates for their basketball teams, with a perfect 100%. According to Tidesport, Bucknell is one of only 11 teams in the tournament to have a 100% graduation rate for all of their players. As the popular chant/taunt goes, “2, 4, 6, 8–all our players graduate!”

The Bison’s 28-5 record and impressive leading ensemble of Mike Muscala ’13, Joe Willman ’13, and Bryson Johnson ’13 have many people thinking that the Bison could go far in the tournament. Many sources are predicting that the 11^th seeded Bison have what it takes to knock of 6^th seeded Butler, largely in part to Muscala. Patrick Stevens of USA Today Sports comments that “[Muscala] is a ruthlessly efficient post presence, establishing position effectively and then delivering high-percentage shots. Yet he can also step outside and connect on mid-range jumpers and (on rarer occasions) 3-pointers. Bucknell wisely is built around his talents, and his skills amplify the abilities of some capable complementary pieces.” Other analysts also laud Muscala, stressing his importance in the Bison’s attempt to pull off an upset against Butler.

Of course, if Muscala isn’t enough, maybe having a cool-sounding name will do. Bucknell’s fame has risen as far as the Jimmy Kimmel Show, where Kimmel’s cousin Micki picked “Buck-null” to win it all. Micki’s motivation for choosing the University? In her own words, “I think it’s important in life to support the underdogs, and the most important thing is [to] go with your gut, and not your head.” Well said Micki, well said.

Eric Brod

Senior Writer

The road back to the top of the Patriot League is complete for the Bison men’s basketball team. This gritty squad, led by arguably the most decorated senior class in program history, is poised to make some serious noise as they head back to the NCAA Men’s Division One Basketball Championship tournament as the 11 seed in the East Region. The Orange and Blue defeated a tough Lafayette team 64-56 in the Patriot League Championship on March 13 after defeating a game Army squad in the league semifinals 78-70, on March 9. The Bison head to the tournament with a 28-5 overall record, and set the single-season record for most wins by a Patriot League team. This is the second tournament appearance for the Bison in three years and the sixth in program history.

The Bison used tough defense, especially from guards Steven Kaspar ’15 and Ryan Frazier ’16, and a tremendous second-half stretch run by Mike Muscala ’13 to get past the two-seeded Leopards. In front of a raucous crowd at Sojka Pavilion, Muscala showed why he was the Patriot League Player of the Year, posting 20 points and 11 rebounds for a nation-leading 22nd double-double of the season. Frontcourt teammate Joe Willman ’13 provided a great effort as well, posting 14 points and eight rebounds in the victory.

In the first half, the defense stifled a Lafayette offense that came in to the contest red hot, limiting them to just 18 points on 29.2 percent shooting en route to a 26-18 halftime advantage. Ben Brackney ’14 came off the bench and nailed two crucial first-half threes to get the Orange and Blue offense going in the opening frame. The tandem of Kaspar and Frazier limited Lafayette point guard Tony Johnson, who came in leading the Patriot League in field goal percentage, and held him to 11 points for the game on just 4-13 shooting.

The Bison came out strong to start the second half, pushing their lead to 12 points early on. However, the Leopards went on a 9-0 run led by Joey Ptasinski to cut the home team’s lead to 30-27. Frazier then came up with a game-changing series of plays. On the team’s following possession, Frazier made a driving layup as the shot-clock was winding down, and then broke up Lafayette’s inbound pass and found Cameron Ayers ’14, who finished with a hard-earned nine points, for the layup to push the lead back to seven.

Lafayette refused to go away though, going on a 6-1 run to cut the Bison lead down to 41-38 with 7:17 left. Then Muscala, the program’s all-time leading scorer and only player to surpass the 2,000 point mark, took over. First, he hit a hook shot on right baseline, and then came back on the team’s next possession and nailed another hook shot from the left baseline. Later, Muscala nailed a jumper that bounced off the rim several times before finally going in as part of a pivotal 12-0 run that expanded Bison lead to 55-40 with 2:54 left. A flurry of Lafayette three’s kept the game interesting, but a pair of Brackney free-throws sealed the victory, and Muscala’s 11th rebound of the game with eight seconds left started the celebration.

Muscala, who was just as excellent in the postseason as he was in the regular season, was named tournament MVP, and was joined by Willman and Ayers on the All-Tournament team. Ayers talked about how the team came together to bring home another Patriot League Championship.

“The most impressive aspect was how it was a total team effort. Every guy played a huge role in the win over Lafayette and it just shows how hard we have been working together throughout the whole year,” Ayers said.

The Orange and Blue survived an upset bid by the pesky Army Black Knights in the league semifinals. The Bison were paced by Muscala, who finished with 21 points and 14 rebounds, and Ayers scored 19 points, including 17 in a tense second half.

The Orange and Blue came out strong and took a 36-31 lead into halftime. The Bison lead grew to seven at 51-44 after an Ayers jumper. Army refused to give in and eventually took a 61-59 lead after Patriot League Rookie of the Year Kyle Wilson nailed a layup after being fouled.

The veteran, tough Bison team responded. Bryson Johnson ’13, who throughout his career has had a knack for providing threes when needed most, drained a three on the Bison’s next possession to retake the lead at 62-61, and ignited a 10-1 run. This proved to be the difference as the Bison advanced to their third-straight league championship game.

Ayers was brilliant down the stretch, and during one stretch scored 10 of the team’s 13 points. He explains what the keys to his success were against the Black Knights in the second half.

“I think I was able to succeed during the second half because I came in from halftime with an aggressive mindset and I tried to play to my strengths by getting to the midrange jumper,” Ayers said. “My teammates did a great job finding me and encouraging to keep attacking.”

In the final 3:30, Muscala hit five of six free throws to help seal the victory, and scored 11 points and 11 rebounds in the second half. Brackney again was huge off the bench, grabbing five boards and mostly filling in for Willman, who was plagued by foul trouble for large portions of the game but still posted eight points and five rebounds in 25 minutes of action.

Eric Brod

Senior Writer

The road to the NCAA tournament has officially begun. In a historic week for the men’s basketball program, which included Mike Muscala ’13 breaking the all-time program scoring record, the Bison won a pair of games against Navy, the second a 58-42 victory in the quarterfinals of the Patriot League Tournament after defeating the Midshipmen 62-46 on March 2. The Orange and Blue have now advanced to the league semifinals for the third straight year.

In the opening round of the league tournament on March 6, the Orange and Blue dominated Navy on the defensive end en route to their third victory of the season over the Midshipmen. Muscala, who came into the game just two points shy of Al Leslie’s 32-year-old program record for career scoring (1,973), broke the record with a free throw 3:53 into the contest. The Bison also received strong play from starting point guard Steven Kaspar ’15 who finished with seven points and Ryan Hill ’14, who had a strong game with five points.

In the game, the Bison relied on a smother defense and outstanding free throw shooting to get past a tough Navy squad. Muscala, who shot 9-10 from the line, recorded his 20th double-double of the season with 15 points and 13 rebounds. In the first half, the Orange and Blue held Navy to a mere 22.2 percent shooting en route to a 26-16 first half advantage. The Midshipmen were also held scoreless for the final 5:30 of the first half.

Navy made a mini-run in the second half to cut the lead to 32-23, but the Bison responded with an emphatic 12-1 run. A key point in that span came when Navy committed a flagrant foul on Joe Willman ’13. Willman, who had 10 points and seven rebounds, knocked down both free throws and Hill scored on the ensuing possession. The Bison led by 20 after Bryson Johnson ’13, who had seven points in the game, hit a pair of free throws. The Orange and Blue extended their lead to as much as 23 points before the game was over.

For the night, the Bison shot only 38.6 percent and 2-14 from beyond the arc, but used a balanced offensive attack and were able to get to the line, shooting 22-24 from the foul line on the night.

The Bison completed one of the most impressive and memorable seasons in program history with a convincing victory over the Midshipmen on March 2. Rebounding proved to be pivotal in the regular season finale, as the Orange and Blue outrebounded Navy 35-26, led by Willman who pulled down 10 rebounds to go along with nine points. Muscala finished with nine points and seven rebounds in 23 minutes of game action.

Making his third straight start, Kaspar showed his versatility with an impressive eight points, four assists and two steals. For the game, the Bison had 18 assists on 23 made baskets.

The Bison raced out to a quick 13-2 lead on 6-10 shooting to start the game and held a 33-24 advantage at halftime. After Navy had cut the lead to six near the end of the half, Kaspar forced a steal and found Johnson, who nailed a three-pointer at the first half buzzer.

Cameron Ayers ’14, who finished with a game-high 14 points, opened the second half with two straight three’s to extend the Bison lead to 39-24, and the team led by double digits the rest of the way en route to the victory.

“They tried to play a lot of different defenses against us and we moved the ball around well for the most part,” Ayers said. “We have seen a variety of defenses this year and I think if we keep being aggressive on offense and make the right plays we should have success on Wednesday.”

The Bison will look to advance to the Patriot League Championship tomorrow when they take on Army in the league semifinals.  Game time is set for 4:30 p.m. at Sojka Pavilion.