(Photo: Rich Barnes-USA TODAY Sports)
Courtesy of BucknellBison.com
WEST POINT, N.Y. – Paced by a record-setting 40-point performance from senior Chris Hass, Bucknell picked up a big 84-76 road win over Army West Point on Saturday afternoon at Christl Arena. Hass set a school record with 32 points in the first half – on 11-for-11 shooting – and then he scored his final six points in the last 1:15 to help put away a close contest.
Bucknell has now beaten Navy and Army West Point – the two teams with the best non-conference records this year – to start Patriot League play 2-0. The Bison improved to 5-8 overall, while the Black Knights fell to 10-4, 1-1.
Bucknell led 37-36 at the half, with Hass’ incredible performance keeping the team in it. While he was making all 11 of his shots, including four 3-pointers, the rest of the team was just 1-for-17 from the field. That reversed in the second half. Hass finally missed a few shots as he was blanketed all over the floor, but his teammates scored 39 of the team’s 47 after the break, when the Bison shot 53 percent as a team.
Ryan Frazier chipped in 13 points, Nana Foulland had seven points and a career-high 12 rebounds, and Dom Hoffman added nine points, including a huge 3-pointer in the second half.
Tanner Plomb led Army West Point with 23 points on 8-for-23 shooting, while Kyle Wilson added 21 points and Kevin Ferguson 15 points and 14 rebounds.
“Chris was obviously incredible tonight, but just as impressive as the 40 points is that he made Tanner Plomb work really hard for his points,” said head coach Nathan Davis. “Army is really difficult to guard – Plomb is as good a scorer as there is in the league — but we won the game because we got big stops down the stretch.”
Bucknell trailed 25-15 after a Ferguson follow with 6:38 in the half, and then Hass really got going. He scored Bucknell’s next 16 points in a span of just 3:43, capped by three treys in 34 seconds to put the Bison up 31-27.
Back-to-back 3-pointers by Wilson put Army back in front 36-33, but Hass finished his record-setting
half with a backdoor layup and then a pull-up jumper with 0:05 left to put Bucknell up 37-36 at the break.
Hass finally missed a shot in the second minute of the second half, but that was just as the team was getting going offensively. Frazier’s transition layup at the 17:35 mark put them up 43-42, and Bucknell would lead the rest of the way, although the game was not decided until the final minutes against a Black Knights team that came in leading the league in scoring at 86.3 points per game.
Hoffman’s layup off a Nate Jones inbounds pass stretched the lead to nine at 57-48. Army West Point closed within three on Plomb’s 3-point play, but at the other end Hass kicked a pass out to Hoffman for a right-wing 3-pointer. Again the Black Knights got it to three, but the Bison earned a key defensive stop, and then Foulland skipped a pass to Frazier for another big trey with 3:17 left.
The teams traded baskets twice more before Hass hit his biggest shot of the night, a 17-foot jumper that made it 74-68 with 1:15 to go. The Bison then forced three straight misses and grabbed the rebound on each. They went 10-for-10 from the foul line in the final 55 seconds to ice the game.
Hass’ charity tosses with 20 seconds left got him to the 40-point mark. His previous career high was 32 last season against both Villanova and Holy Cross. He finished 13-for-19 from the floor, 4-for-6 from 3-point range and 10-for-12 at the line.
Hass turned in the seventh 40-point game in Bucknell history, and the first since Kevin Bettencourt racked up 42 at Saint Francis (Pa.) on Dec. 6, 2003. Hass had the first 40-point effort in a Patriot League game since Navy’s Chris Harris scored 40 against Lehigh on Feb. 10, 2010. It was also the first 40-point game for a Patriot League player since Lehigh’s C.J. McCollum scored 42 vs. Kent State on Nov. 26, 2010.
The previous Bucknell record for points in a half was 27, set by Joe Steiner against La Salle in 1962 and Chris Simpson against Holy Cross in 1994.
“You don’t really realize what is happening when you are in the moment,” said Hass about his record-setting scoring flurry. “You are just concentrating on getting stops and then making the next one when you get the chance.”
Hass moved past Ted Aceto and Greg Leggett into 26th place on Bucknell’s all-time scoring list with 1,146 points. He is one point behind Charles Lee for the No. 25 spot.
Bucknell shot 48.3 percent overall and hit 6 of 13 from the 3-point arc and 22-for-28 from the line. Army West Point shot 40.6 percent – well under their 47-percent mark coming in – and went 8-for-23 from long distance and 12-for-16 at the line. The Black Knights had a narrow 39-38 rebounding edge.
The Bison are back home on Wednesday to take on American at 7 p.m.
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