LEWISBURG, PENNSYLVANIA---To most college basketball fans of the northeast, if not only Chris Hass of the Bucknell Bison, but Ryan Frazier individually outscored Fairfield Stags' star Marcus Gilbert, then one would have assumed Bucknell would have ended up with the victory. Oddly, that was not the case Sunday afternoon.
Despite holding Fairfield's "star senior" to 16 points, 14 more than his scoring average from his last three outings, Bucknell found themselves falling again at home, this time by the score of 101-91.
Standing toe-to-toe and trading baskets early, the first real lead of the afternoon was not experienced until the Stags were able to nail three triples (one from each Jerome Segura, Jerry Johnson Jr., and Kevin Degnan) as a part of a 18-2 run, which turned a 2-point deficit into a 14-point advantage (32-18). However, thanks to a combined 15 in the last 7:35 from Hass and Frazier, the Bison were able to weather the early Fairfield storm and trail only by two heading into the halftime locker room (45-43).
Utilizing the momentum gained at the end of the first, Bucknell's Nate Sestina started the second twenty minutes with a twine tickler from beyond the arc to supply his squad with their first lead since 16-14 with 13:09 remaining in 1st. Nevertheless, and similar to the previous half, Fairfield quickly took back what was theirs with a burst of unanswered treys, this time four (three coming from Gilbert), to re-up the distance between the two to 13 in favor of road team.
Less than ten minutes later, two of Tyler Nelson's game-high 25 gave the Stags a game-high edge of 19 with 6:19 remaining (86-67).
Although the Bison were able to muster a 24-10 stampede in garbage time to wither Fairfield's lead to 5 and raise the blood pressure of Stags' fans as well as head coach Sydney Johnson, Bucknell's Frazier was unable to net a three-pointer down six on the ensuing possession, leading to a pair of made free throws by Fairfield's Jonathan Kasibabu and the seventh consecutive loss for the orange and blue (Bucknell).
Don't Forget about Me
With the majority of attention from opponents going to Marcus Gilbert, "stud sophomore" Tyler Nelson often gets overshadowed by his teammate. Yet, after today, Bucknell will be sure to never make the same mistake. As Gilbert did have an efficient day inside the Sojka Pavilion (5 for 8 shooting, 16 points), the 6'3" guard was the difference for he bucketed 25 points that, without them, would have resulted in a loss for the Stags. Fairfield will re-open their 1-1 MAAC record and 6-5 season mark at Manhattan on January 2.
Sinking like a Stone
Starting the season 3-1, hopes were high for the Bucknell Bison to have another great season. But, with seven straight losses since, the probability of a postseason bid have become bleak unless a march through the Patriot League Tournament transpires. Moreover, with the likelihood of Zach Thomas being out long-term (he only played four minutes today), the question looms: Who will step up as a third option behind Chris Hass (19 points) and Nana Foulland (15 points)? How about Ryan Frazier! Frazier, who entered averaging only 6.5 points per game, led the Bison in scoring with a season-high 20 points! The 6'0" guard must be the answer offensively to have any success in conference play, which begins Wednesday versus Navy.