Old Dominion (2-0) at Bucknell (0-1)
Game Info – Saturday, Nov. 7 at 5 p.m.
Location – Sojka Pavilion (Lewisburg, Pa.)
Watch – ESPN+
Listen – ESPN Sports Radio 94.1
Live Stats – Click Here
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NORFOLK, Va. – Old Dominion men’s basketball has its first road game of this season this Saturday as the Monarchs travel to Lewisburg, Pennsylvania to take on Bucknell at 5 p.m.
Fans will be able to stream Saturday’s game on ESPN+, and they can hear Matt Hatfield calling the game on ESPN Sports Radio 94.1. Live stats will also be available.
Series History
Saturday will mark the fourth meeting between the two programs, with ODU holding a 2-1 lead in the all-time series. The Monarchs defeated the Bison, 88-76 on Jan. 5, 1979 in the Kiwanis ODU Classic.
ODU hosted the next meeting on Feb. 23, 2008 in a Bracketbuster game, defeating the Bison, 65-55. Gerald Lee finished with 20 points and seven rebounds, Frank Hassell added 10 points and eight rebounds, and Brian Henderson chipped in 10 points with five assists.
During the 2008-09 season, the Bison came out on top of an 83-82 double-overtime game on Nov. 26 in Lewisburg. Bucknell’s Justin Castleberry scored a layup with 16 seconds left in the second overtime period. Lee led ODU in the loss with a career high 26 points to go with seven rebounds, and Hassell scored a career best 20 points with 11 rebounds.
About ODU
The Monarchs (2-0) hosted Division III Regent University on Wednesday night and defeated the Royals, 91-47. Scottie Hubbard led the way with career highs of 16 points and four three-pointers made. He shot 4-for-6 from distance and converted all four of his free-throw attempts. Also scoring in double figures were Adante’ Holiman (12 points) and CJ Lyons (11 points). It marked ODU’s largest margin of victory since the Silver and Blue defeated UTEP, 82-33 on Feb. 17, 2018.
Through ODU’s first two games, Zacch Wiggins and Hubbard have paced the offense with 14.0 and 10.5 points per game, respectively. A Greensboro, North Carolina native, Wiggins opened the season with a 25-point performance to lead the Monarchs past Western Michigan, 61-49 this past Monday in the first round of the MAC-Sun Belt Challenge. Through games played on Nov. 4, he ranks third in the Sun Belt with 28 points and field goals made (10), fourth in made free throws (7), and fifth in free-throw percentage (87.5%). Hubbard, a Washington, D.C. native in his third season at ODU, has knocked down a team-high five threes.
Jared Turner (4.0 ppg) leads ODU on the glass and ranks 25th nationally with 14 rebounds (7.0 rpg), and Kylan Howze (6.5 ppg) follows Turner with 10 boards (5.0 rpg). Khoi Thurmon (4.5 ppg) has dished out nine assists, good for 31st in Division I. He and Bubu Benjamin (5.5 ppg) have combined for nine steals so far, while Jotham Nweke (2.0 ppg) has made a team-leading three blocks.
As a team, the Monarchs enter Saturday’s game shooting 46.1% from the field, 27.7% from long range, and 65.6% at the free-throw line. ODU has averaged 76 ppg with a +28.0-scoring margin and has outrebounded its first two opponents by an average of 10.5 boards. Old Dominion is 23rd in the nation in scoring defense, allowing just 48.0 ppg, and leads the Sun Belt with a 9.0 turnover margin.
ODU is led by Coach Mike Jones, who is in his third season with the program.
About Bucknell
The Bison (0-1) defeated Endicott College, 84-71 in an exhibition on Oct. 24 before opening the season with a 96-67 loss at Maryland on Monday night. The Terrapins put together a 21-5 run in the first half and led 44-30 at halftime. Bucknell’s Aleksander Pachucki scored a career high 23 points on 8-for-14 shooting from the floor and made 7-of-11 shots from beyond the arc. Rocco Lamuno was next in scoring for the Bison with 12 points, and Luca Soroa Schaller contributed seven points with four assists.
A junior guard from Scarborough, Ontario, Canada, Pachucki is one of four players tied for the national lead in three-pointers per game. He is eighth in the country in threes made and ranks second in the Patriot League in points, points per game, field goals made, and field goal attempts. Kyle Marshall (4.0 ppg) has pulled down a team-high four rebounds, followed by Soroa Schaller and Ethan Marten-Coney (4.0 ppg) with three rebounds each. Forward Patrick O’Brien and Soroa Schaller share the team lead in assists with four each, Marshall has two steals, and Soroa Schaller has recorded Bucknell’s lone block so far.
In Monday’s season opener in College Park, the Bison shot 43.4% from the field, 38.7% from the perimeter, and 64.3% at the charity stripe. Bucknell finished 10-23 overall last season with a 6-12 mark in conference play. At the Patriot League Tournament, the Bison won their first-round matchup versus Army, 65-55, but fell in the quarterfinals, 74-69 to Navy. The team has six returners, with O’Brien the lone senior on the team. Also back for Bucknell are guards Jayden Williams, Pachucki, Jacob Meach, and Matt Lange as well as forward Kellen Welch. The Bison added 11 newcomers, to include four transfers in Soroa Schaller (Northeastern), Marshall (Air Force), Lamuno (Spring Hill), and Luke Soden (Regis).
The Bison were picked to finish sixth in the Patriot League’s Preseason Poll and are led by fourth year head coach John Griffin III.
Up Next
The Monarchs will take on crosstown rival Norfolk State next Wednesday, Nov. 11 at Joseph G. Echols Memorial Hall. Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m.
SEASON SPONSOR
Bon Secours is the Presenting Sponsor of Old Dominion University’s 2026-27 Men’s Basketball Season. Bon Secours is proud to operate its four hospitals and medical centers in Hampton Roads and is even more proud to serve the surrounding community with exceptional care. It’s our mission at Bon Secours Hampton Roads to treat the whole person — mind, body and spirit, to bring compassion to health care, and to be good help to those in need. Bon Secours – the health care you deserve from a team you can trust.