EMAIL THIS PAGE

American Prepares for Patriot League Tournament
No. 1 Eagles set to take on Lehigh in first round action

February 27, 2002

Printable Patriot League Tournament Bracket

Senior Patrick Doctor lead the Eagles with 14.3 points and 5.5 rebounds per game in the regular season.

WASHINGTON -- In its first season in the Patriot League, American University's men's basketball team won the regular season championship with a 10-4 league record (16-11 overall). Now, the second season of college basketball begins with the Patriot League Tournament which tips of Saturday at the Show Place Arena in Upper Marlboro, Md.

The tournament promises to be exciting as usual with the top five teams only separated by two games during the regular season. Number two seed Holy Cross is the defending league champion having defeated Navy in overtime last year.

The first round games begin Saturday at noon with the semifinals being played Sunday at 5:00 and 7:30 p.m. The championship game will be played on Friday, March 8 at 4:30 p.m. on ESPN. The highest remaining seed in the tournament will host the championship game for the right to play in the NCAA Tournament. Here is a preview of the first round match-ups and some insight into the teams in the league.

No. 1 American (16-11, 10-4 PL) vs. No. 8 Lehigh (5-22, 2-12 PL)

The Eagles head into the match-up with Lehigh as the top seed in the tournament after the capturing the regular season crown. Senior Patrick Doctor leads American with 14.3 points and 5.5 rebounds per game. Doctor also lead the league in field goal percentage for the season, shooting at a .579 clip. In the second game against Lehigh, Doctor scored 30 points for his second consecutive 30 point outing. Steven Miles was 12th in the league with 11.9 points per game and ninth in the league with his 5.4 rebounds per game. Glenn Stokes finished the regular season second in free throw percentage (.875), second in steals (50) and fifth in three-point percentage (.393).

Lehigh is led by Matt Logie whose 15.6 points per game places him third in the league. Logie scored 31 points against the Eagles on Feb. 16. Senior Scott Taylor has returned to action for the Mountain Hawks after a bout with mono. Taylor scored 20 points as Lehigh beat Bucknell in the final game of the regular season.

During the Patriot League conference call, American head coach Jeff Jones said, "We know Lehigh is a very capable team. We were lucky to get out of Bender with a win." Jones continued with his analysis of the Mountain Hawks saying "They have a reputation of being a dangerous team in the tournament and they have experience in beating higher seeds."

American swept the season series with Lehigh, winning 65-59 in Bethlehem and 70-67 in Washington. Of the Mountain Hawks' 12 league losses, only three came by more than 10 points. In addition, Lehigh has won in the first round of the Patriot League Tournament the last three years, defeating Lafayette, Bucknell and Navy. The Mountain Hawks are 5-11 all-time in the Patriot League Tournament.

No. 2 Holy Cross (15-14, 9-5 PL) vs. No. 7 Navy (10-19, 5-9 PL)

Holy Cross enters the tournament as the second seed and defending Patriot League champions. The Crusaders have won seven of their last nine games and the last three by 20 points or more. Tim Szatko and Ryan Serravalle lead Holy Cross with 13.2 and 12.8 points per game respectively. Jave Meade lead the league in assists with 148 (5.10 per game) and steals 67 (2.31 per game).

Navy has lost four straight games and seven of their last eight. The Midshipmen's top scorer is Jehiel Lewis with 12.0 points per game. Jason Jeanpierre adds 10.9 per game. Francis Ebong led the league in rebounding with 7.3 boards per game.

Holy Cross swept the season series against Navy and holds a five-game win streak against the Midshipmen, including last year's championship game won by the Crusaders 68-64 in overtime. Navy holds a 13-7 Patriot League Tournament record while Holy Cross is 11-9 all-time. The teams have split their two previous meetings in the tournament.

No. 3 Bucknell (12-15, 8-6 PL) vs. No. 6 Army (12-15, 6-8 PL)

Bucknell heads into the Patriot League Tournament as the number three seed for the fourth time in the last five years. The Bison reached the championship game in 1999. This year, they are led by Bryan Bailey whose 18.1 points per game would have led the league if he had played in enough games to qualify. Boakai Lalugba scores 14.7 points per game and grabs 7.1 rebounds.

Army holds the top two scores in the league with Chris Spatola and Charles Woodruff (16.7 and 16.3). Spatola also led the league in free throw percentage at .893, missing only 13 all season. J.P. Spatola was second in the league in assists with 4.93 per game.

Bucknell swept the season series with Army, winning both games by three points. This will be the third meeting between the schools in the Patriot League Tournament with the Bison holding a 2-1 advantage. Army won the last time the teams met in 1995, upsetting the No. 2 seed Bucknell, 94-78. Bucknell is 12-11 all-time in the Patriot League Tournament while the Black Knights are 2-11.

No. 4 Colgate (17-10, 8-6 PL) vs. No. 5 Lafayette (14-13, 8-6 PL)

Colgate enters the tournament as the number four seed thanks to its defeat of Lafayette in the final game of the regular season. Both the Raiders and Lafayette were bounced from the tournament in the first round last season. Colgate is led by Pat Campolieta who averages 14.9 points per game while also being second in the league with 7.2 rebounds per game. Mike Linebaugh adds 13.8 points per game for the Raiders.

Lafayette is the number five seed for the second consecutive season. The Leopards are led by senior Brian Burke who scores 15.4 points per game. Mike Farrell is the top rebounder with 4.9 per game. Justin DeBerry adds 11.9 points per game for the Leopards.

Colgate swept the season series with Lafayette and have won four straight against the Leopards. The teams have split their four meetings in the Patriot League Tournament with Lafayette winning the last match-up by two in 1999. The Raiders 12-9 all-time in the Patriot League Tournament while the Leopards are 8-9.

Keep up to date on the Patriot League tournament with AUEagles.com. There will be complete coverage from the Show Place Arena each day of the tournament.