After facing tough competition early this season, the Boston University men’s basketball team can soon breathe a sigh of relief as it begins the final leg of its non-conference schedule when Bucknell University comes to Agganis Arena Sunday at 2 p.m.
The Terriers (2-6) are reeling from a difficult opening eight-game stretch including ranked opponents such as No. 21 Georgia Tech and most recently a 28-point loss against No. 13 University of Connecticut. But BU coach Patrick Chambers is confident his team can bounce back against the Bison (4-4).
‘[Bucknell is] obviously not as big and physical as UConn,’ Chambers said. ‘As far as non-conference, we’ve seen it all.
‘I gave them off [Thursday], but we know we have to get better. We know we have to work on the little things, as far as execution. We have to defend a little better, obviously rebound a lot better. And we’ll get there, we’re gonna get there.’
The Bison are best known for knocking off Kansas University in the first round of the 2005 NCAA Tournament, earning them an ESPY for Greatest Upset. This season, the representatives from Lewisburg, Pa., were voted to finish third in the Patriot League and dropped their last game at home in overtime against Ivy League champion Cornell University.
Sunday marks the third all-time meeting between the teams, with the series tied at a win apiece. In the first week of action a year ago, the Terriers trailed by as much as 16 points on the road before coming back to defeat the Bison in overtime, 71-68. Bucknell has never played at BU as their victory came in a 2005 in-season tournament held in California.
The Boston University Athletics Department is pulling out all the stops for the Terriers’ last home game of the semester, giving away BU Basketball metal water bottles to the first 300 in attendance. An hour before tip-off, fans will also have a chance to take pictures with trophies from recent Boston championships, including the 2004 & 2007 Red Sox World Series, the 2008 Celtics Finals and the 2009 BU men’s ice hockey NCAA Championship.
‘It will be nice to play in front of a big crowd,’ Chambers said. ‘These kids could use the support, especially the ones who aren’t used to playing all these minutes, it will be nice for them to play in front of a good fan base.’
But no matter who fills the seats, what’s most important is who will show up on the court. Senior co-captain Scott Brittan is out for at least another month with a concussion, classmate Valdas Sirutis has missed two straight games and co-captain Corey Lowe sat out against UConn. As for Sunday, Chambers said Lowe was ‘questionable’ and Sirutis was ‘doubtful’ to return to action.
Although games won’t truly matter until America East play begins in January, with the competition decidedly less intimidating from here on out, the Terriers still hope to end the semester and non-conference schedule on a positive note.
‘It’s another game on our schedule,’ Chambers said. ‘It’s not a statement game ‘-‘- it’s not a must-win. I think it’s a game that we just keep getting better. And despite injuries, despite setbacks, we have to keep moving forward . . . [then] we’re going to be that much better come America East when we hopefully have healthy 13 guys.
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