The Bucknell men’s basketball team enjoyed perhaps its most successful season ever last winter, and the Bison have parlayed that glorious journey into a 2005-06 schedule that figures to be one of the most exciting, if not daunting, in the 111-year history of the program. It is a slate littered with perennial top-20 powerhouses, national television appearances, milestone home games and tournament action.
 
Some of the highlights:
--  Home games against Philadelphia powerhouses Villanova (Dec. 6) and St. Joseph’s (Dec. 21), two of the most highly regarded teams to ever to pay visit to Lewisburg.
--  Away contests at perennial national championship contenders Syracuse (Nov. 22) and Duke (Jan. 2).
--  The first appearance by a Patriot League team in the ESPN Bracket Buster series, at a road site and time to be determined (Feb. 18).
--  A record number of national television broadcasts, including a confirmed ESPN date at Duke, another possible ESPN appearance in the Bracket Buster, two scheduled games on College Sports Television (CSTV) as part of the Patriot League television package, and additional regular season and postseason TV possibilities still to be announced.
--  Games in Chicago (vs. DePaul, Dec. 3) and the San Francisco area (Cable Car Classic at Santa Clara, Dec. 28-29).
--  Two regular-season Patriot League championship rematches with Holy Cross (Jan. 14 at Sojka Pavilion and Feb. 11 at the Hart Center).
 
Of Bucknell’s 11 scheduled non-conference opponents, not including the to-be-announced Bracket Buster matchup and the Cable Car Classic possible second-round opponents, seven teams recorded 20 or more victories last season and another won 19. Those 11 opponents averaged 19.9 victories and compiled a combined record of 219-116 (.654).
 
Four opponents participated in the NCAA Tournament, including Sweet Sixteen qualifiers Villanova and Duke, while four others were invited to the NIT, including tournament runner-up St. Joseph’s.
 
“Everybody in the program is very excited about the schedule,” said head coach Pat Flannery. “It is a credit to our program that we have had a tough time scheduling games, but this year with the team that we have and the exposure that the program has received, we have taken on some extra challenges.”
 
Villanova, which was just a one-point loss to eventual national champion North Carolina away from an Elite Eight berth last season, joins fellow Big 5 power St. Joseph’s in highlighting a landmark 12-game Sojka Pavilion schedule. The Bison are 14-0 in Patriot League home games over the last two seasons and 24-6 in Sojka Pavilion since debuting in the new facility in January 2003.
 
The Wildcats, who are coached by 1983 Bucknell alum Jay Wright, will be making their first trip to Lewisburg since 1948. Villanova finished 24-8 overall and 11-5 in the Big East last season, and with most of its key parts returning, many prognosticators include the Wildcats on their list of 2006 national title contenders.
 
“I think it is going to be a very special night for Jay to bring a top-ranked team back to his alma mater,” said Flannery, who was a senior point guard at Bucknell when Wright was a freshman. “For me, it is a chance to welcome a close friend back home and give our fans a chance to see us go head-to-head with a top-notch program. I know for our players it is a game they are really looking forward to.”
 
St. Joseph’s is just two seasons removed from a 30-2 season and a magical run to the Elite Eight. Phil Martelli’s Hawks backed that up with a 24-12 campaign (14-2 Atlantic 10) in 2004-05. Left on the NCAA Tournament bubble, St. Joe’s went all the way to the finals of the NIT before falling to South Carolina. One of their 12 losses, however, was a 69-62 setback to Bucknell on Hawk Hill in late December.
 
The Bison open the 2005-06 season at Rider on Friday, Nov. 18 at 7:30 p.m. The Broncs lost 69-50 at Sojka Pavilion last season but went on to post a stellar 19-11 record (13-5 MAAC) and advanced all the way to the MAAC Tournament championship game.
 
While Bucknell is looking to build on its stunning win over Kansas in the first round of the NCAA Tournament in March, game-two opponent Syracuse was on the opposite end of an NCAA upset and will be looking to erase all thoughts of its season-ending loss to Vermont. Led by Hall of Fame head coach Jim Boeheim and All-America candidate Gerry McNamara, the Orange finished 27-7 and won the Big East title in 2004-05. Bucknell did visit the Carrier Dome for the Coaches vs. Cancer Classic last season, but did not face Syracuse. The Bison and Orange last squared off in the 1989 NCAA Tournament, a 104-81 Syracuse victory. The last Bucknell team to play at Syracuse was the 1973-74 squad, coached by Jim Valvano.
 
Bucknell’s home opener will be on Saturday, Nov. 26 against Yale at 7 p.m. at Sojka Pavilion, then the Bison hit the road for two more difficult tests against Niagara (Nov. 30) and DePaul (Dec. 3). The Purple Eagles went 20-10 last season and won the MAAC title, while DePaul finished 20-11 overall and 10-6 in its final season in Conference USA. The Blue Demons, who move to the Big East this season, advanced to the second round of the NIT.
 
The Villanova game kicks off a four-game homestand on Dec. 6. After an 11-day layoff for final exams, the Bison host Cornell (Dec. 17), Haverford (Dec. 19) and St. Joseph’s (Dec. 21) before breaking again for Christmas. The Cornell game is Community Day at Sojka Pavilion, with all admission free of charge.
 
After the holiday the Bison head to Northern California for their first-ever appearance in the Cable Car Classic, hosted by Santa Clara. In the opening round on Dec. 28 Bucknell battles Boston University for the very first time. BU went to the NIT last season with a 20-9 record and was the runner-up to Vermont in the America East with a 14-4 conference mark.
 
Host Santa Clara will battle UC Riverside in the other first-round matchup, with consolation and championship games slated for Dec. 29.
 
The Bison ring in 2006 with their first visit to Duke’s famed Cameron Indoor Stadium since 1984. The 4:30 p.m. tipoff on Jan. 2 will be televised live on ESPN. Led by All-America candidates J.J. Redick and Shelden Williams, the Blue Devils are looking to build on a 27-6 season and an NCAA Sweet Sixteen appearance.
 
Bucknell has a chance to appear on ESPN again on Bracket Buster Saturday on Feb. 18. The 2006 Bracket Buster field has expanded to 100 teams from Division I “mid-major” conferences across the country, and in late January ESPN will select 11 of the 50 series games for national broadcast on ESPN, ESPN2 or ESPNU. The Bison are the first Patriot League team to be invited to compete in the annual event. 
 
The Bracket Buster represents a brief pause in what should be an ultra-competitive Patriot League schedule. Bucknell begins league play with consecutive road games at Navy (Jan. 7) and American (Jan. 14), then returns to Lewisburg for the first of two regular-season showdowns with Holy Cross on Jan. 14.
 
That contest, to be aired live on CSTV, will be the first between the two Patriot League powers since the Bison defeated the Crusaders at the Hart Center in last year’s conference championship tilt. Holy Cross went on to earn an NIT bid and knocked off Notre Dame in the first round. The Bison and Crusaders will meet again in Worcester, Mass., on Feb. 11.
 
Bucknell will also appear on CSTV on Feb. 15 at Lafayette.
 
The Patriot League Tournament begins on March 3, and once again this season the top two seeds will serve as hosts for the first two rounds. The championship game, to be televised on ESPN at the higher seed’s home court, is scheduled for Friday, March 10.
 
The Bison captured their first Patriot League title a year ago and made their first NCAA Tournament appearance since 1989. Bucknell then made national headlines with a stirring 64-63 upset of Kansas in the first round of the “Big Dance” in Oklahoma City. A hard-fought 71-62 loss to Wisconsin in the second round ended Bucknell’s season at 23-10, one victory shy of the school record. Including mid-season victories over seventh-ranked Pittsburgh – the highest-ranked team Bucknell has ever beaten – as well as St. Joseph’s and Niagara, and the 2004-05 season has been widely considered the most successful in school history.
 
In 2005-06 Bucknell returns all but one player from last year’s storybook run. All-conference selections Kevin Bettencourt, Charles Lee and Chris McNaughton, as well as reigning Patriot League Defensive Player of the Year Abe Badmus, headline an experienced roster.
 
Single-game and season tickets are on sale at the Bucknell Ticket Office (570-577-1000) located at the Weis Center on campus.
 
2005-06 BUCKNELL MEN'S BASKETBALL SCHEDULE
                                                                                

November                                                                                                     

Fri.        18        at Rider                                 7:30 p.m.        Bucknell, 29-24      19-11/13-5
Tue.      22        at Syracuse                           7 p.m.             Syracuse, 8-0        27-7/11-5
Sat.       26        YALE                                    7 p.m.             Tied, 2-2                11-16/7-7
Wed.     30        at Niagara                             7 p.m.             Niagara, 5-2           20-10/13-5

December                                                                                                      
Sat.        3        at DePaul                              2 p.m.             First meeting         20-11/10-6
Tue.        6        VILLANOVA                         7 p.m.             Villanova, 12-9       24-8/11-5
Sat.       17        CORNELL                             1 p.m.             Cornell, 21-20        13-14/8-6
Mon.     19        HAVERFORD                        7 p.m.             Bucknell, 3-0         14-12/12-6
Wed.     21        ST. JOSEPH’S                      7 p.m.             St. Joe’s, 16-2       24-12/14-2
Wed.     28    #  vs. Boston Univ.                     11 p.m.           First meeting         20-9/14-4
Thu.      29    #  vs. Santa Clara or                  9 or 11 p.m.     First meeting         15-16/7-7
                                   UC Riverside                                     First meeting         9-19/4-14
 

January

Sun.        2        at Duke (ESPN)                     4:30 p.m.        Duke, 2-0              27-6/11-5
Sat.        7    *   at Navy                                 1 p.m.             Navy, 29-18           9-19/5-9
Wed.     11    *   at American                           7:30 p.m.        Bucknell, 19-17      16-12/8-6
Sat.       14    *   HOLY CROSS (CSTV)           1 p.m.             Bucknell, 21-18      25-7/13-1
Wed.     18    *   LAFAYETTE                           7 p.m.             Lafayette, 82-53     9-19/5-9
Sat.       21    *   COLGATE                             7 p.m.             Bucknell, 45-38      12-16/7-7
Wed.     25    *   at Lehigh                               7 p.m.             Bucknell, 86-56      14-15/7-7
Sat.       28    *   NAVY                                   7 p.m.             Navy, 29-18           9-19/5-9
 

February

Wed.       1    *   at Army                                 7 p.m.             Bucknell, 31-14      3-24/1-13
Sat.        4    *   at Colgate                             1:30 p.m.        Bucknell, 45-38      12-16/7-7
Wed.       8    *   AMERICAN                           7 p.m.             Bucknell, 19-17      16-12/8-6
Sat.       11    *   at Holy Cross                        3:30 p.m.        Bucknell, 21-18      25-7/13-1
Wed.     15    *   at Lafayette (CSTV)                6 p.m.             Lafayette, 82-53     9-19/5-9
Sat.       18    ^   at ESPN Bracket Buster         TBA               
Wed.     22    *   LEHIGH                                7 p.m.             Bucknell, 86-56      14-15/7-7
Sat.       25    *   ARMY                                   7 p.m.             Bucknell, 31-14      3-24/1-13
 

March

Fri.          3    +  PL Quarterfinals                             TBA       
Sun.        5    +  PL Semifinals                                TBA
Fri.        10    +  PL Championship Game (ESPN)     TBA
 
All times Eastern
* Patriot League contest.
# Cable Car Classic, Santa Clara, Calif.
^ ESPN to announce Bracket Buster pairings and television selections in late January
+ Patriot League Tournament – top two seeds to host first two rounds, championship at highest remaining seed
Schedule as of Aug. 31, 2005 (subject to change).

Check out more 2005-06 Team Schedules.