LEWISBURG, Pa. — The Bucknell Bison welcome head coach John Griffin III back for his second season as head coach.
The team finished 14-19 (10-8) last season with a second place finish in the Patriot League. The team fell short to Colgate in the league semifinals.
The goal is to carry the momentum from last year into this one. The Bison won four out of their last five games, steadily improving and gelling as the year went on.
"There's a lot of energy right now. We've taken that momentum into the off-season. We worked hard in the summer. We've worked hard now, to this point in the preseason, and I think our group is excited that there's energy around the program," said Griffin.
While the team did graduate one of their top players from a season ago in guard Jack Forrest, the rest of the team's starters are returning.
"That type of continuity is just critically important," said Griffin. "We're able to really pick up where we left off last season. We don't have to waste a lot of time and energy around building a culture and introducing new players," he said.
Senior's Elvin Edmons IV and Josh Bascoe return as the team's point guards. Junior center, Noah Williamson, also returns in the middle after his sophomore breakout season.
The continuity comes with higher expectations, though, as Griffin has set up a tough non-conference schedule ahead.
The team begins the year with three straight road games, one in Lexington, KY.
"It's great to be battle tested," said Bascoe. "When you get to the end of the year, like in February and March, you've been through a lot and that may lead to a lot of tough wins... It's good to face really good competition earlier in the year to prepare us for the latest stages of the season," he said.
Trips to Gonzaga and Syracuse are also on the schedule later in the season.
Griffin mentions that getting Bucknell basketball back to the standard it was when he was playing is a big goal of his. He's confident that this team can help do that.
"We have to keep working day in and day out to make sure we meet those expectations," said Griffin.
The team opens the season at the University of Delaware on Monday, Nov. 4th at 6:30 p.m.