LEWISBURG, Pa. – Bucknell broke a 54-54 tie with a late 7-0 run and Colgate never recovered in its first Patriot League loss of the season, falling to the Bison 66-60 on Sunday afternoon inside Sojka Pavilion.

The Bison shot 62.5 percent in the second half including 6-of-9 from behind the arc to snap Colgate's 12-game winning streak away from home during Patriot League play. The loss is the Raiders' first road defeat against a Patriot League opponent since Feb. 4, 2023, at American (61-60). 

Sam Wright led the team in scoring with 16 points on 6-of-10 from the field including 4-of-8 from behind the arc. Jeff Woodward and Jalen Cox each reached double figures with 12 points apiece. Cox added six assists and five rebounds to his seventh consecutive double-digit scoring effort. 

COACH LANGEL'S COMMENTS

"We fought hard for a long time. Obviously this wasn't our best shooting performance, especially from the foul line and three-point line. We finally took the lid off there – Sam, Kyle, and Chandler hit some big ones – but too many timely mistakes and turnovers. Give Bucknell credit. They stepped up and made some big shots late in the game. Noah Williamson is a load for them and he had an effective game. Winning on the road is hard to do. We had our chances but we weren't able to take advantage." HOW IT HAPPENED

• The game was tied 54-54 with 4:20 left in regulation when Bucknell rode a 7-0 run. Noah Williamson connected on a 3-pointer to give the Bison the lead for good, and then back-to-back tough shots in the lane from Josh Bascoe and Achile Spadone made it 61-54 with 1:55 left. 
• Wright connected on his fourth 3-pointer of the game before Cox drove for a transition layup to trim the deficit to 61-59 with 1:02 left, but another layup from Williamson made it a two-possession game and the Bison handled the finish from the free throw line to hand Colgate its first Patriot League defeat of the season. 
• A slow first half for both teams saw Colgate shoot just 28 percent to Bucknell's 28.1 percent clip. Nicolas Louis-Jacques scored in the paint to give Colgate its first lead, 8-7. The Raiders extended the lead to as many as five points, 19-14, on a trifecta from Wright with 4:15 left in the half.
• Colgate missed its final four attempts from the field and Bucknell closed the half on a 9-0 run to take a 23-19 low-scoring lead into the first-half intermission. 
• A 3-pointer from Elvin Edmonds IV extended Bucknell's lead to 27-20 less than two minutes into the second half before Colgate found its best scoring run of the game – an 8-0 burst capped by four unanswered points from Woodward to give Colgate a brief 28-27 lead with 16:30 left.
• Bucknell regained the lead on the next possession and never trailed again, opening its largest lead of the game, 46-38, on another 3-pointer from Edmonds with 9:11 showing. 
• The Raiders clawed back to tie the game four separate times, with 3-pointers from Chandler Baker, Kyle Carlesimo, and Wright giving the Raiders a chance before Bucknell's 7-0 run gave the home team the lead for good down the stretch.

GAME NOTES

• The loss snapped Colgate's (4-11, 1-1 Patriot) nine-game winning streak against Bucknell, with the Bison picking up their first win of the series since Feb. 26, 2020. It also snapped Colgate's 12-game road win streak in Patriot League play and three-game win streak in Lewisburg.
• Sam Wright's four made 3-pointers were a career-high, and his 16-point total was two shy of his career-best 18 points against Sam Houston set earlier this season. 
• Jalen Cox scored in double figures for the seventh consecutive game.

UP NEXT
Colgate (4-11, 1-1 Patriot) comes home for back-to-back games in Hamilton, starting Wednesday with a 7 p.m. tipoff against Lehigh (6-7, 1-1 Patriot) in the first meeting between the two teams since last year's Patriot League championship. The game will be produced on ESPN+.