Bucknell swamps American for 80-61 win in Patriot League
WASHINGTON -- Nana Foulland and Zach Thomas combined for 36 points as Bucknell swamped American 80-61 on Saturday afternoon in preparation for the Patriot League Tournament which begins Tuesday.
Bucknell (22-9, 16-2) which has already secured the Patriot League regular season championship, will play its first game on Thursday after receiving a first-round bye. The Bison, who have won five straight after seeing a 10-game win streak halted by Lehigh, became the first team in league history to win 16 conference games in a season.
Bucknell closed the first half on a 22-6 run to take a 38-22 lead into the break. The Bison took control underneath with a 22-6 advantage on the boards in the initial period. They pushed their lead to 49-29 with 16:38 remaining in the game before American rallied to close within 51-39. Foulland hit a jump shot to switch the momentum and the Bison took a 70-49 lead with 5:58 left.
Foulland was 7 of 9 from the floor and made 6 of 11 from the free throw line for 20 points. Thomas was 5 of 9 from the floor to total 16 points with Stephen Brown adding 10.
Sam Iorio had 17 points to lead American (6-23, 3-15), which will have the last spot, the No. 10 seed, in the tournament.
Game Information
- Referees:
- Tim Ebersole
- Joseph Palacz
- Jamahl Ralls
2023-24 Patriot League Standings
Team | CONF | GB | OVR |
---|---|---|---|
Colgate | 16-2 | - | 25-10 |
American University | 10-8 | 6 | 16-16 |
Boston University | 10-8 | 6 | 16-17 |
Bucknell | 10-8 | 6 | 14-19 |
Lafayette | 10-8 | 6 | 11-21 |
Lehigh | 9-9 | 7 | 14-18 |
Navy | 8-10 | 8 | 13-18 |
Army | 6-12 | 10 | 10-22 |
Holy Cross | 6-12 | 10 | 10-23 |
Loyola Maryland | 5-13 | 11 | 7-25 |