Everybody is jockeying for postseason position heading into the final two weeks of conference play. Tonight's schedule probably won't do much to sort things out. The big three-- Bucknell, Lehigh and Holy Cross -- are each prohibitive favorites in their matchups tonight. The only game likely to make a difference is American at Army, which could give the Eagles a leg up in the race for fourth for now.

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Bucknell at Lafayette, 6 p.m.: A trap game? Certainly this one has all the makings. A nationally ranked team, riding high, coming off a huge road win, with a national TV date against highly regarded foe just ahead, on the road against a team it has handled with ease in recent meetings, including a 30-point win a month ago in Lewisburg.

On paper, Lafayette is no match for the No. 24 Bison, who have won 11 in a row. But the Leopards are a much better team at home than on the road. In Kirby, Lafayette is 6-4, 2-2 in league games. Those two league losses at home were both by double-figure margins. But in each of those games, against Lehigh and Holy Cross, the Leopards were right in the game until the final 10 minutes.

Bucknell, on the other hand, has won six straight on the road. But the Bison had to rally from double-digit deficits in the last three of those road contests. That is a habit that will eventually bite you if you don't break it.

For Lafayette, at least two of three things must happen for them to have a chance. They have to hold their own on the boards, shoot the lights out and take care of the ball. The last time they played Bucknell, the Leopards actually held a 39-38 edge on the boards. But they turned the ball over 27 times and shot just 22.9 percent. Predictably the final score was 62-32 in Bucknell's favor.

This one should be closer, but trap game or not, it is hard to imagine the Leopards pulling the upset. Especially since Lafayette will be without Jamaal Hilliard (broken finger). Two other Leopards are questionable. Ted Detmer is nursing a bad ankle and Bilal Abdullah a bad wrist.

Reports from Easton indicate tickets are selling at a brisk pace for the Bison's visit. What is not known is how much of the pumped up advance sale is due to Bucknell fans planning to make the trip to Easton. The Bison have traveled well all season and their new Top 25 ranking is bound to bring even more alums on board the bandwagon.
Bucknell notes | Lafayette notes | Morning Call preview | USA Today matchup | Bucknell Radio

Navy at Holy Cross, 7 p.m.: Holy Cross has won the last 13 meetings between the two, including six straight in Worcester. And they have won convincingly, by an average of more than 16 points per game. Included in that is an 81-67 final in Annapolis two weeks ago in a game that was actually over at the half.

The Crusaders' loss Saturday to Bucknell leaves them no margin for error if they hope to grab one of the homecourt spots in the first two rounds of the league tournament. Holy Cross will gain the No. 2 seed if it wins out.
HC notes | Navy notes | USA Today matchup | HC radio | Navy radio

American at Army, 7 p.m.: When these two last met, Army took the Eagles into overtime. Coming on the heels of a tight loss at Lehigh, and followed by a win at Navy, it looked as though the Cadets were on the verge of turning a corner. Since the win over Navy, though, Army has dropped six in a row, all, except for an OT loss to Navy in the rematch, by double figures.

Don't count on any homecourt advantage to make the difference for the Cadets. They have not beaten a Division I opponent in Christl Arena since beating Navy there in January 2005. That was Army's only D-I home win last season. In Jim Crews' three-plus seasons as Army's coach, the Cadets have picked up 5 home wins against D-I foes.

On the other hand, AU has not exactly been road warriors. The Eagles' win Saturday at Colgate is its only league win outside of Bender. Overall, AU is 2-11 on the road.
Army notes | AU notes | USA Today matchup | Gametracker | AU radio

Colgate at Lehigh, 7:30 p.m.: It has taken a while for the preseason expectations for Colgate to wear off. But after waiting, and waiting, and waiting for the Raiders to live up to the potential that seems to be on its roster, it has become apparent that the 'Gate probably really is as bad as its 2-8 conference record would indicate. The Raiders have not beaten anybody but Army since last year and aside from two wins over the Cadets, have only one other Division I win in their last 16 games.

Lehigh has only one loss -- to Bucknell -- in 9 games since Joe Knight returned to the lineup The Mountain Hawks have won four straight since that loss to the Bison. The Hawks only won by 8 at Colgate in January. But Colgate is horrible on the road; 1-10 overall, the lone win coming at Army. Lehigh is pretty good at home, 9-3 overall, 4-1 in league games.
Colgate notes | Lehigh notes | USA Today matchup | 'Gate radio