LATEST HEADLINES

Tuesday, January 30, 2007
Tonight on the tundra
There are two things Bucknell can count on when they meet Colgate tonight in Hamilton: (matchup) Snow and a small crowd.

A week ago we'd have added Colgate shooting poorly to that list. That was before the Raiders surprised the heck out of everybody by knocking down 53.7 percent of their on the road at Navy.

Odds still favor an off night. That was the only game (against a Division I foe) Colgate shot over 50 percent since Dec. 2. It's a feat they have accomplished just four times all season. It seems far more likely Colgate will shoot under 40 percent, something they have done in 9 of their past 13 games.

Even after the outburst at Navy, the Raiders remain the league's worst offensive team (last in scoring and field goal percentage).

That does not bode well against Bucknell, which is the league's top defense (first in scoring and field goal percentage defense.)

These two just played 10 days ago in Lewisburg, with Bucknell holding Colgate to 36 points in a 50-36 win.

A week ago you'd also have said you could count on Bucknell getting little, if any, offensive production from point guard Abe Badmus. But Badmus broke out of a season-long slump in two games last week, suddenly finding both range and confidence in his jumper. Badmus hit a pair (out of four) of three-pointers against Lehigh and followed that with a three for three at the arc night against Army. When that happens, Bucknell becomes a very scary offensive team.

If the Bison get production on the perimeter, it makes it even harder to stop Donald Brown and Chris McNaughton inside.

Despite all the factors that seem to point to Bucknell, the Bison still need to be sure to avoid the Hamilton trap. (Read Ralph Willard's thoughts on Hamilton -- scroll down to his Jan. 25 entry). Just ask Holy Cross, which needed a Keith Simmons three with 20 seconds to go to pull out a 58-55 win at Colgate last week.

Labels: , ,

Published at 7:20 AM by Hoop Time.
Help Hoop Time