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<p>Nathan Davis changed the culture of Bucknell basketball upon his hiring in April of 2015. Since then, Davis has guided the Bison to national prominence.</p><p>The Bison have been the Patriot League regular-season champions for the past three seasons. Last year, Bucknell made it back to the Big Dance for the first time since the 2005-06 season. Bucknell drew the No. 13 seed and took on No. 4 West Virginia in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. The Bison nearly knocked off the Mountaineers before falling 86-80.</p><p>With eight out of 10 players returning from last season, opponents knew that Bucknell would be a tough match up.</p><p>&#8220;We had a hard time trying to find people who wanted to play us in non-conference games because we had the majority of our roster returning,&#8221; Davis said. &#8220;We played tough opponents like Arkansas and last year&#8217;s National Champion North Carolina to give us a chance to challenge ourselves and expose our weaknesses early on so we could work on them and get back to the tournament.&#8221;</p><p>Among the returning players was senior co-captain Stephen Brown.</p><p>Brown, a Manassas, Virginia, native was an integral part of Bucknell&#8217;s success. Brown scored 22 points, 19 of them in the second half, to help the Bison beat Colgate 83-54 in the Patriot League championship. For his efforts, Brown was named the Patriot League Most Valuable Player.</p><p>&#8220;When I got the job, I could see that Stephen had a lot of talent,&#8221; Davis said. &#8220;He&#8217;s put in a lot of work and he&#8217;s really developed on and off the court.&#8221;</p><p>Davis could not not stop praising Brown&#8217;s leadership. &#8220;We play well when Stephen is at his best. When he speaks everyone on the team listens.&#8221;</p><p>&#8220;It&#8217;s been a great experience as a leader,&#8221; Brown said. &#8220;We have a good group of guys to play with.&#8221;</p><p>Davis saw his team&#8217;s hard work pay off. After winning the Patriot League championship, the <strong>Bison</strong> were selected to the Midwest Region to take on No. 3 seeded Michigan State as the No. 14 seed in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.</p><p>&#8220;This season was very challenging. We battled a lot of injuries, we had a tough schedule and we got everyone&#8217;s best in the Patriot League,&#8221; Davis said. &#8220;It was very satisfying to get this result.&#8221;</p><p>This will be the second all-time meeting between Bucknell and Michigan State. The teams met for the first time in 2003 when the Spartans beat the Bison 64-52.</p><p>The Bison will take on the Spartans at the Little Caesars Arena, home of the Detroit Pistons, 7:10 p.m. Friday.</p><p>&#8220;It&#8217;s practically like a home game for the Spartans,&#8221; Davis said. &#8220;But I&#8217;d rather play in a packed house where it&#8217;s loud then in an empty building.&#8221;</p><p>Coach Davis and the rest of his staff have been preparing for Hall of Famer Tom Izzo and his Michigan State Spartans, led by top national talents Miles Bridges and Jaren Jackson Jr.</p><p>&#8220;Those guys are both going to be NBA lottery picks. They can score points and make tough shots,&#8221; Davis said. &#8220;We need to work hard to make sure they have a tough time scoring the basketball. We can&#8217;t allow them easy baskets.&#8221;</p><p>&#8220;Coach has been telling us that we have to keep preparing like we have,&#8221; Brown said. &#8220;We just need to play confident as a team.&#8221;</p><p>Seniors Nana Foulland and Zach Thomas will be the defensive cogs for the Bucknell. Foulland and Thomas are not only the top two in scoring for the Bison, but they also pace the team in the rebounding category.</p><p>Not only does Foulland leads all active centers in scoring in the NCAA but is also a perennial shot blocker, averaging 1.8 blocks per game. Foulland is third on the Bison all-time block list with 212.</p><p>If the game goes down to the wire, the Spartans should avoid sending Thomas to the line. He has been to the free-throw line 299 times this season, knocking down 231 of them. Both lead the nation.</p><p>&#8220;Last year was a great experience. We didn&#8217;t know what to expect,&#8221; Brown said. &#8220;This year we know our opponent and hopefully we can upset them.&#8221;</p><p>&#8220;They are going to be big and physical. We will have to play as a team,&#8221; Davis said. &#8220;We have to be ready to scratch and claw for 40 minutes.&#8221;</p><style>
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<div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/web1_54147d916d314343bcbfd114c40afd5d-54147d916d314343bcbfd114c40afd5d-0.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Bucknell coach Nathan Davis yells instructions to his team.  </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/web1_54147d916d314343bcbfd114c40afd5d-54147d916d314343bcbfd114c40afd5d-0.jpg</photo0><caption0>Bucknell coach Nathan Davis yells instructions to his team.  </caption0><photoCredit0>Chris Knight | AP photo </photoCredit0></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/web1_baeb455321cd49fabac213e15bb05b06-baeb455321cd49fabac213e15bb05b06-0.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Bucknell&#8217;s Stephen Brown (2) shoots over Colgate&#8217;s Francisco Amiel in the Patriot League men&#8217;s tournament championship. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo1>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/web1_baeb455321cd49fabac213e15bb05b06-baeb455321cd49fabac213e15bb05b06-0.jpg</photo1><caption1>Bucknell&#8217;s Stephen Brown (2) shoots over Colgate&#8217;s Francisco Amiel in the Patriot League men&#8217;s tournament championship. </caption1><photoCredit1>Chris Knight | AP photo </photoCredit1></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Dan Stokes</p><p>For Times Leader</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><factboxMeta><p><strong>KEYS TO THE GAME</strong></p><p>&#8226; Transition defense</p><p>&#8226; Out rebound the bigs</p><p>&#8226; Take quality shots</p><p>&#8226; Play through the contact</p><p>&#8226; Ball movement</p><p><strong>TEAM LEADERS</strong></p><p><strong>Bucknell Bison</strong></p><p>Stephen Brown`14.9 PPG`3.4 REB`4.3 AST</p><p>Nana Foulland`15.4 PPG`7.1 REB`1.8 BLK</p><p>Zach Thomas`20.3 PPG`9.2 REB` 2.2 AST</p><p><strong>Michigan State Spartans</strong></p><p>Miles Bridges`16.9 PPG`6.9 REB`2.8 AST</p><p>Nick Ward`12.6 PPG` 7.2 REB` 1.4 BLK</p><p>Jaren Jackson Jr.`11.3 PPG`5.8 REB` 3.2 BLK</p></factboxMeta></div>

Bison Madness? Bucknell ready to take on Michigan State in NCAA Tournament