The Bucknell Bison lost to the Nevada Wolf Pack, 75-67, in the Second Round of the 2012 NIT Tournament at the Lawlor Events Center in Reno, Nev. on Sunday.
Bucknell struggled from the floor in the first half and weren't able to prevent Nevada from scoring at will. As a result, the Bison trailed, 42-29, at halftime and had to big of a hurdle to clear in the second half. The Bison did put up a good fight in the second half but just didn't have enough left in the tank to overcome the double-digit halftime deficit. One of the keys for Nevada holding off the furious comeback attempt was that they went 24-32 (75%) from the free throw line. The Wolf Pack entered the game 290th in the NCAA in free throw shooting percentage (64.9%).
Mike Muscala and Cameron Ayers had very strong performances for the Bison. Muscala had 25 points, 15 rebounds, 3 assists, a steal and a block. Ayers also scored 21 points for Bucknell. Nevada was led was led by 24 points by Oleg Czyz and 18 points by Malik Story.
With the loss, Bucknell finishes the season at 25-10 (12-2 Patriot). The Bison won the Patriot League regular season crown before falling to Lehigh in the Patriot League Tournament final. The loss to Lehigh dropped Bucknell into the NIT where they were a No. 8 seed. Bucknell upset the No. 1 seed Arizona in the First Round of the NIT before falling to Nevada. The Wolf Pack will move on to play the winner of Stanford and Illinois State in the NIT Quarterfinals on March 21.
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