By PAUL GOTHAM
The top seed in next week’s Patriot League tournament is up for grabs. The Bucknell Bison have clinched at least a share of their 10th PL title, but the Lehigh Mountain Hawks can still grab the number one seed with a win and a lot of help. Army West Point, Boston University, Colgate and Navy will battle for spots three and four and a home game in the quarter-final round. Here’s the preview of Saturday’s games:
Lehigh (14-14/12-5) at Army West Point (18-11/9-8) Noon, CBS Sports Network
Two of the hottest teams in the nation meet with plenty at stake. After starting the season with seven straight losses against a rigorous schedule including two ranked teams and three from Power 5 conferences, Lehigh brings the nation’s third longest win streak at eight into Saturday’s showdown. Army has won five in a row – the 10th longest of its kind in the country. Lehigh is 6-2 on the road in PL play. The Mountain Hawks are looking to finish first for the first time since 2009-10. Tanner Plomb scored 23 as Army took the first meeting, 88-82. Plomb leads the PL with 20.3 points a game. Lehigh’s Tim Kempton is third 17.3. Kempton grabs nine rebounds per contest. He is second in the PL to Army’s Kevin Ferguson who corrals 9.8.
Holy Cross (10-18/5-12) at Boston University (17-13/10-7) Noon, Patriot League Network
Holy Cross took the first meeting. Malachi Alexander scored 17 for the Crusaders.
Colgate (13-15/9-8) at Lafayette (5-23/2-15) Noon, Patriot League Network
Colgate goes for the sweep. Dave Krmpotich netted a career-high 17 in the 77-70 Raiders triumph.
Loyola (Md) (9-19/8-9) at American (10-18/8-9) Noon, Patriot League Network
Tyler Hubbard accounted for 18 points as Loyola grabbed the conference opener, 75-67.
Bucknell (16-12/13-4) at Navy (18-12/9-8) 4 p.m. Patriot League Network
Bucknell took the first matchup, 88-58. Chris Hass led all scorers with 22.
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